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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24691081">Digital Shuffle</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/FamiraD/pseuds/FamiraD'>FamiraD</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Digimon, Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Tamers, Digimon Wonderswan Series</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Dark, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Artificial Intelligence, Battle, Betrayal, Conspiracy, Crossover, Digital World, F/M, Flashbacks, Gen, Human Duplicate, Male Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Mystery, Real world, Shared Universe, Supercomputer, Violence, clone, someone's a clone</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 08:27:24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>144,272</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24691081</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/FamiraD/pseuds/FamiraD</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>One night, Takato vanishes, leaving Guilmon and his D-Arc behind. With something weird happening down at Hypnos, maybe there's more to this than a missing boy. To get their friend back, not to mention save Tokyo, Jenrya and Ruki must face conspiracies, a Digital World bent on invasion, and new allies with their own agendas. </p><p>They aren't the first kids to meet Digimon...and these partnerships aren't as magical as they seem.</p><p> [Main setting is Tamers, with crossover with Adventure, Wonderswan, and X-Evolution]<br/>[Main characters followed are Jenrya, Ryo, Takato and Ruki, with Side Stories following other characters like Yamaki]</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. False Digital Fog</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A normal day is flipped on his head when Takato vanishes overnight.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/><strong>Author's Note</strong>: Digimon Tamers, centered around Takato and Jenrya (and one more character). Switches to the other characters from time to time. Takes just before Yamaki sets forth his Juggernaut plan (like, a day or two before the Juggernaut is activated. Don't really know the exact episode, guess between Episodes 12 and 14) <strong>departs from canon from there and goes off in a different direction. </strong></p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N    T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L   S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong><br/>(Chapter 1 – False Digital Fog)<br/><br/></strong>
</p><p>"So, what's your plans for tonight?"</p><p>Takato Matsuda looked up, tugging on his shoes, "Huh?"</p><p>"I said, what's your plans for tonight?" Jenrya Lee repeated. The other Tamer carefully folded his gym shirt, his back to the other boy. He just finished his physical education class – Takato's P.E period happened to fall right behind Jenrya's. Sometimes he got to catch Jenrya before he left.</p><p>"Um…dunno," Takato bent over his knee as he focused on tying his gym shoes, "Homework and more homework, I guess."</p><p>"Oh, that'll be fun," Jenrya said. He placed the folded shirt and shorts into his locker, "You really have that much homework?"</p><p>"Yeah. And I really wanted to see Guilmon today…" Takato sighed. He reached up to remove the yellow goggles from his hair, wincing as the straps got caught in a tangle. He tugged on the goggles until they ripped themselves from the tangle, managing to suppress a yelp of pain. "I probably won't have enough time when I finish my homework to get out of the house."</p><p>"You know, if he wasn't so big, he could stay at your house instead of out in the park."</p><p>"You don't have to remind me."</p><p>"Well, you should've known a red dinosaur would be just a <em>little</em> obvious. If your parents won't even let you keep a cat, what made you think they'd let you keep Guilmon?"</p><p>"It wasn't like I had it all planned out!"</p><p>Jenrya closed his locker, slipping his feet into his sneakers, and turned with a grin, teasing. Takato heaved another sheepish sigh.</p><p>"Sometimes I think I bring all this stuff down on myself," he grumbled. He didn't really <em>mean</em> it, no matter how much he complained. Sure, he created Guilmon completely by accident but he didn't regret it. In fact, overall, it had been really fun hanging around with Guilmon, Jenrya and Terriermon. Heck, even Ruki wasn't that bad once you got to know her.</p><p>Jenrya shouldered his backpack, "Well, I'll be seeing you."</p><p>"Meeting up with Terriermon?" Takato opened his own locker.</p><p>"Yeah. He's waiting outside. Said the locker room's too smelly for him."</p><p>"Smelly? Huh, now that you mention it, it does sorta smell in here."</p><p>"You know Terriermon: blunt, as usual."</p><p>"Yeah, as usual…" Takato trailed off, not sure what to say.</p><p>There was an awkward silence. Takato scratched the back of his head, while Jenrya cleared his throat.</p><p>"Uh," Jenrya looked like he wanted to say something but wasn't entirely sure how to go about it. He shuffled his feet, "Ah…about - "</p><p>A whistle sounded from outside.</p><p>"Oh, jeez, P.E's starting!" Takato hurriedly shoved the remainder of his stuff into his locker and slammed the door, "I'm gonna be late again!" He pulled up his gym socks from where they slipped down to his ankles, "Sorry, Jenrya, but I gotta…"</p><p>He looked up. Jenrya was gone.</p><p>"…go…?" Takato wondered briefly what Jenyra had been about to ask before he remembered he was supposed to be at gym class. <em>I can't be late or Mrs. Yamachi's gonna make me run around the whole school </em>again<em>!</em> Keeping this fun thought in mind, Takato raced out of the locker room.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya made his way across campus. He was supposed to be heading to his English class but instead took his time. It didn't matter if he was a minute or two late. He could just say he'd gone to the bathroom, the teacher knew he was a good student and wouldn't give him any trouble. Probably.</p><p>The boy crossed the stretch of grass, heading for the shed. He told Terriermon to hide near the school's tool shed until he swung by after gym. Jenrya smiled slightly - the rabbit-Digimon had insisted the boy's locker room was "stinky" and <em>"killing</em> my nose". Terriermon might be right, but he also had a problem with exaggeration, along with being way too blunt at times. Especially when he had first encountered Takato and caused the poor kid to run away, on the verge of tears.</p><p>Jenyra's smile dropped. On the topic of Takato…</p><p>Jenrya was concerned about the other Tamer. He didn't want to play babysitter or anything, but…well, he was worried. Takato wasn't acting weird or anything, which was <em>exactly</em> what bothered him. It really hadn't been that long since Guilmon first digivolved to Growlmon. Jenrya remembered the horror and fear in Takato's face that night. Even Jenrya had been scared.<em> I thought Growlmon was gonna make us the second course after he got diced up Devidramon.</em> It didn't take a genius to figure out what had been going through Takato's mind at the time: he had been afraid that Growlmon wasn't Guilmon anymore, that whenever he digivolved, he'd turn into a monster who only loved to destroy. <em>I used to think like that. </em>Still, Jenrya was confusd. Takato was acting like nothing happened. Like Guilmon never digivolved that night. Like everything was okay now.</p><p>Yeah, right.</p><p>Jenrya thought Takato was trying to pretend like nothing was wrong. Takato might;ve even fooled himself into believing that. <em>Man, I should've known Takato would be an optimist. He always wants to see the best in people, doesn't he? But if he keeps pretending nothing happened, it's only gonna come back and hit him in the stomach.</em></p><p>Takato <em>knew</em> this wasn't a game. <em>These wild Digimon we've been fighting, they're real as we are. Takato seemed to get over the fact we're </em>killing<em> them really fast.</em> Jenrya frowned. Maybe he should explain to Takato the similarities between the Tamer's Digimon and the wild ones again. Takato was taking things too well, especially for his situation. Maybe he didn't fully understand the wild Digimon weren't cold-blooded monsters? He probably didn't know they were most likely frightened because of the strange world they found themselves in.</p><p>Yeah, he'd definitely have a talk with Takato. Deleting Digimon was as bad as killing humans. And what were they going to do about that weird blond man with the sunglasses? Jenrya himself had only seen the guy when he said something along the lines of "stop playing dangerous games" a few days ago, but Takato said he saw the man another time. He hadn't gone into details because the both of them had been sitting in class<em>.</em></p><p>Another thing Jenrya was going to have to ask Takato when they both had more time.</p><p>"Jen-r-y-a-a!"</p><p>He snapped to attention in time to spot the bundle of light green fur hurtling through the air toward him. Jenrya threw up his hands.</p><p>"Hey! Warn me next time you jump at me like that!"</p><p>The Digimon scrunched up his nose at his Tamer.</p><p>"What took you so long? I was bored to death!"</p><p>Jenrya laughed quietly as Terriermon scrambled from his arms to perch on his backpack, "I was in P.E. We had to do conditioning today."</p><p>"You wash your hair for exercise?" Terriermon snorted. "That's so <em>weird</em>."</p><p>Jenrya craned his head, watching as the rabbit-Digimon slipped into his backpack, his head and floppy ears sticking out.</p><p>"No, we <em>don't</em> wash our hair for exercise, Terriermon. You're just being silly. Conditioning is a bunch of exercises that supposed to work out all your muscles. The teacher decided to make us go around the conditioning stations several times – I just got out of the locker room," he replied.</p><p>"Huh."</p><p>Jenrya turned around and began to make his way back to the main classroom complex. He had to shift his heavier backpack several times because it kept slipping.</p><p>"Terriermon, you're gonna have to lose some weight," Jenrya grinned. "I'm gonna break my back one day because of you."</p><p>He didn't quite hear his Digimon's reply: the bell drowned anything the Rookie might have said. Jenrya broke into a run. He didn't want to be more late than he already was.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Conditioning. Shoulda known." Takato rolled his eyes up to the sky. "Maybe running around the school wasn't such a bad idea."</p><p>Juri glanced at him, "You don't like conditioning?"</p><p>He groaned, "No! I'm horrible at running and swimming and I'm always the last whenever we do races. It's embarrassing." Takato really was bad at gym. Last time, he was at least five minutes behind the second-to-last runner when they ran cross-country around and through the campus. Most of his classmates had already gone back to the locker rooms, having given up on waiting for him.</p><p>Takato watched forlornly as the gym teacher passed him. She was almost done with attendance, he noted with dread. He'd hoped she'd take at least a few minutes longer, anything to cut down on the conditioning time. <em>Great. I just </em>know<em> I'm going to look stupid out there. At least no one'll laugh at me…I hope.</em> He scratched the back of his leg nervously with the toe of his shoe.</p><p>"I wonder what stations they set up?" Juri asked.</p><p><em>I wish </em>I<em> knew. Hopefully these'll be something I can do without looking clumsy. Like jump rope. I can jump rope. Please don't let it be the Stair Run. I always fall up those stairs and bang my knees every time we do those!</em> Takato made a face. <em>At least it's the last class.</em> He supposed he could survive a few cuts and bruises on his knees.</p><p>Mrs. Yamachi spoke up, coming to a stop in front of the line with clipboard under her arm. She clapped her hands together in an effort to get her class's attention.</p><p>"Okay! Looks like everyone's here." The teacher made some marks on the clipboard she was carrying and looked up. "Today, we're going to be conditioning. We've had the stations set up by numbers. As soon as you complete one station, move to the next. Stations will be marked by a blue traffic cone. The other side of the sign will have instructions for that station's exercise. I expect you all to go through all the stations more than once."</p><p>This was answered by a groan from the students. Yamachi only shook her head, her short green hair swinging.</p><p>"This is good for you, children!"</p><p>Another groan.</p><p>"I'll be running through the stations with you. I don't want to see any of you failing to put your full effort into this." Yamachi looked down to consult her clipboard again. "I'll be pairing you all up into groups of two – no, you <em>can't</em> pick your partners – and sending you off. When you find your partner, you may begin the conditioning."</p><p>She looked up, and smiled pleasantly, "And don't think that just because you might have been paired up with a friend that you can slack off just because my back's turned. I've got eyes in the back of my head. I see and know all."</p><p>This was answered by rebellious mutters.</p><p>Takato bit his lip. So much for hiding out somewhere until school ended. Especially if there was a chance his partner might decide to be a tattletale. Guess he could scratch that idea.<em><br/></em></p><p>Yamachi began to pair off the students,</p><p>"Hirokazu and Hiros…Kazu and Ashige…"</p><p>The line began to split apart as the pairs were called.</p><p>"Juri and Takato."</p><p><em> Whew!</em> A sigh of relief. <em>Juri's okay.</em></p><p>He didn't have to look very far for his partner, mostly because she was standing in front of him in the line that was rapidly breaking apart. Juri flashed him a smile he returned nervously (nervously because sometimes her perkiness frightened him and because he just remembered she <em>loved</em> conditioning days. Like really, really love them). Takato flicked a glance at the girl jogging beside him. <em>Just because </em>I'm<em> not having a blast doesn't mean she can't.</em></p><p>They stopped in front of the first cone, which was labeled as "Coordination". Juri skipped around the bright blue traffic cone and read it out loud.</p><p>" 'Coordination: rub your head and pat your stomach. Then spin around twenty times clockwise and twenty more times counter-clockwise. Then pat your head and rub your stomach. Does this three times before moving on to Station Two' "</p><p>"You've got to be kidding," Takato muttered.</p><p>"That's what the sign says," Juri grinned. "It's almost like a piñata at a party, except without the piñata and the candy. Just lots and lots of spinning!"</p><p>Takato sighed for the third time in the period. This wasn't going to be any fun. He hoped he wouldn't get sick with all that spinning.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Click.</em>
</p><p>"Sir!"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"What is it now?"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"I have another Wild One. It's managed to avoid the tracers I sent: visual confirmation failed. There's no known data on this one!"</p><p>
  <em>Click.</em>
</p><p>"Try a firewall! Is it going to bio-emerge?"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"I'm not sure yet. The firewall has been breached!"</p><p>
  <em> Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>"Do <em>something</em> about it! I don't want anymore of those things getting through!"</p><p>
  <em>Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>"It's getting closer! Trying another lock…lock failed! It's going to bio-emerge!"</p><p>
  <em>Click. Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>"Where?"</p><p><em> Click. Click. Click</em>.</p><p>"…T-the…Juggernaut, sir!"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"<em>What?!</em> What's going on?!"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"It's bio-emerging, but it's still traveling along its present course at the same time! It's passed right though the Juggernaut!"</p><p>
  <em> Click. Click. Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>"It's gone. I can't track it anymore. It's out of range."</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"Shit." Yamaki's hand closed around the cigarette lighter. The clicking abruptly stopped. In the darkness of the command deck, he was almost shaking with fury and it was only with considerable effort he refrained from blowing up. He forced his voice to level. "Is there any damage to the Juggernaut?"</p><p>"Running a scan…no, there doesn't appear to be any damage to the exterior or interior," Reika's voice was puzzled.</p><p>Yamaki scowled, pulling off his sunglasses. He didn't understand how this could be possible. It reeked of a trap, something just waiting to go wrong. Digimon were getting braver about these breaches into the Real World and the fact that it was happening on his watch? Didn't sit well. It was a battle to regain his composure. "I want a technical team down there as soon as possible."</p><p>"On it!" A rapid-fire spurt of taps on the keyboard. "But where're you going, sir?"</p><p>Yamaki replaced his glasses, whirling on his heel. "I'm going to the Juggernaut myself."</p><p>He was calm now, though he could still feel the anger burning through him. If something happened to the Juggernaut…</p><p>The clicking resumed but there was a nervous undertone in its rapid beat.</p><p>
  <em> Click. Click. Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Takato, you don't look so good."</p><p>The Tamer leaned against the wall, seeing an interesting array of stars. "I don't <em>feel</em> so well either."</p><p>Juri patted Takato on the back sympathetically. They had gone through the whole conditioning course three times – in fact, he was pretty sure they'd just finished the Coordination station again, which was probably why he was tempted to go in a corner and throw up somewhere. Takato waved away Juri's offers to help him.</p><p>"I'm fine. Just…need a moment…to rest." Takato leaned his head against his arm, brown hair damp with sweat.</p><p>The girl made a face. "Are you going to barf? You are, aren't you?"</p><p>"I'm not! All that spinning just made me dizzy, okay?" Takato summoned up a feeble smile to take the sting out of his words. "And I'm really tired and my knees're killing me because of those stairs, my legs hurt from that sprint and I could go on forever, but I'm not because I think I'm too tired to finish the list."</p><p>Juri's face fell and she looked apologetic. "I thought you were doing fine. You looked like you didn't have any problems keeping up with me…if you weren't feeling well, you should've said something."</p><p>Takato didn't say anything, instead closing his eyes and concentrating on catching his breath and his sense of balance.</p><p>Juri continued, her voice wavering slightly. "I kept going around the course because I thought you were doing okay."</p><p>Takato was about to straighten and tell her it wasn't her fault when the ground suddenly gave way underneath his feet.</p><p>For a second, he almost <em>did</em> lose his lunch.</p><p>He felt himself almost stagger as a sliding disorientation seemed to spin him around, pick him up and shake him around like a rag doll. He couldn't see anything but thousands of black and white dots, like static. The sensation like something was glancing over at him. It felt like someone was trying to twist his guts into a pretzel.</p><p>In that brief moment, Takato decided he did <em>not</em> like pretzels anymore.</p><p>And then it was over. The weird feeling couldn't have lasted for more than a few seconds, though it had seemed like hours to him. He opened his eyes. The ground was safe and firm under his feet, with no signs of suddenly breaking away. He wasn't seeing any static anymore, and his stomach seemed to be its normal shape.</p><p>"I'm really sorry," Juri was saying.</p><p>"It's not your fault, Juri." He pushed himself away from the wall, "I'm okay."</p><p>"You sure?"</p><p>"Yeah. I told you, I'm really bad at P.E." Takato shrugged. He didn't feel light-headed anymore, or sick. The only thing wrong was his legs seemed to want to wobble all over the place and he swore he could already feel the bruises forming on his knees.</p><p>The gym teacher jogged past them, blowing her whistle and signaling gym was over. Takato started to head toward the locker room, followed by Juri. She headed for the girl's locker room, following her classmates. Takato hurried to the boy's locker room. He couldn't wait to get dressed and headed home. So what if he had a lot of homework?</p><p>
  <em>Just gotta catch up on sleep. That's all.</em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki pocketed his lighter. Standing before the hulking structure of the Juggernaut, he was easily dwarfed in comparison. He craned his head, staring at the machine.</p><p>Something was wrong. You just didn't have things jumping around near Hypnos on accident, not with the firewalls and all the other security precautions...only something did and now he was worried. He removed his glasses, scowling. <em>This is ridiculous. The scans didn't show damage to the Juggernaut. There's nothing wrong with it.</em> But deep down, he wondered. Did the techs just tell him what he wanted to hear? Or was there something wrong, ticking in the background. </p><p><em>That wild Digimon</em>. It passed <em>through</em> the Juggernaut in the middle of bio-emerging…yet there was no sign or mark anything had entered or exited the room. He couldn't explain his uneasiness. He knew they'd hunt down the creature, even if they didn't have any data on it. Delete the disgusting thing. The initiation of the Juggernaut plan was scheduled for next week: he promised himself to make a change in that.</p><p>It must be earlier. Next week was too late.</p><p>
  <em>The Juggernaut plan must be initiated sooner. If we don't, they might start getting bold, start hunting again.</em>
</p><p>Maybe this time they'd gotten lucky and the Juggernaut was fine, if the techs really were on the ball. There weren't any imaginary boogeymen behind the closet door. It was a nice thought. But it was also a lie. Pretending the (digital) monsters weren't lurking in the closet, in a world past human understanding.</p><p>Even if Yamaki knew better. The imaginary boogeymen were real. It was his life's work now to destroy them before they could get out into the Real World.</p><p>He turned around, waiting for the tech team to do a full antagonistic. His foot tapped as he scowled. Pushing the Juggernaut plan sounded better and better.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Takato waved as Juri disappeared around the corner. As soon as she was out of sight, he let his hand drop to his side and began walking down the sidewalk. It was starting to get dark and he wanted to get home. Takato didn't want to admit it, but he realized he was still a little afraid of the dark. He hurried down the street. Could he be any more of a kid? A kid who had a big red dinosaur who had flamethrower breath and he was scared of the dark. Yeah. Sounded about right.</p><p>A kid who was going to have a ton of homework if he didn't get home as fast as he could, he thought. If he did his homework as fast as he could, he could go to sleep earlier.</p><p><em>This is a first. I actually </em>want<em> do my homework. What's this world coming to?</em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>A pair of gleaming blue eyes opened. For a second, the creature didn't know where it was, the environment looked completely alien to it. It suffered a moment of intense disorientation before it regained its bearings.</p><p>Him. <em>Not an it. </em>Not a Golem.</p><p>The form shifted, rolling over onto his stomach. He needed to get up. He had spent too much time lying here in the shadows of the alley. He hadn't counted on the transition from the Digital World to the Real World to be so difficult. It hadn't helped he spent a good deal of his journey having to evade those tracers and a firewall. <em>But I'm here now. I mustn't delay any longer. </em>After all this time, now he could prove himself as worthy. To show his Mistress that he was worth her attention.</p><p>He got to his feet, shaking out the cramps forming in the hocks of his cloven hooves. The sun slowly drifted toward the horizon. He didn't venture out of the shadows. Not until it was dark would he make his move.</p><p>The four-legged shadow snorted, blowing a gust of steam from his nostrils, past an ugly set of fangs. Everything had been going well up to the point when he had taken on a physical form, but the energy he took from that machine had scrambled some of his data. He had been flung to the alley by the force and his very being had swung out of control, torn in two, leaving his body in one place and his consciousness in another, if only for a second, before it boomeranged back.</p><p>In this case, it had been a good thing. He had, for a brief moment, accidentally come into contact with one of his targets: a small boy, one of <em>them</em>. The human hadn't even noticed his presence. He couldn't have known someone was taking a look into his recent memories. Oblivious, as most humans went. And completely disgusting.</p><p>He loathed humans. Nothing good come out of a Digimon's contact with them. Humans couldn't be saved: they hadn't been then, years ago, and they couldn't be now. It was one reason why he'd volunteered for the mission. The other being that he just loved to see them squirm. He had yet to meet a trustworthy human that didn't think only in the terms of <em>me-me-me</em>, like the self, pathetic life forms they really were. <em><br/></em></p><p>The blue-eyed creature flicked its tail. What was that boy's Digimon? Guilmon?</p><p>
  <em> Wouldn't this Takato just love a visit from his precious Guilmon tonight?</em>
</p><p><em>Guilmon loves to play, doesn't he? How about a game of </em>my<em> choosing?</em></p><p>He brought up the image of Guilmon from the copied memories: basically a red dinosaur with black markings. Easy to imitate. He closed his sky-blue eyes and concentrated. Transformation to mimic another was a skill few Digimon knew, but his Mistress taught him well. This would be like all the other times. Focused. Concentrated on melding his form to be an exact replica…</p><p>It was close to ten at night when "Guilmon" slipped out of the alley. He bounded down the darkened street, the moon painting his hide a bright red. His eyes shone blue.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Takato."</p><p>Takato rolled over onto his side, his covers wrapping around him. He mumbled into his pillow, still half-asleep.</p><p>"Takato, wake up."</p><p>Something about the voice was awfully familiar. Takato made a sleepy face into the depths of his pillow. Mom? No, and it wasn't his dad either. Come to think of it, it didn't even sound human. Which left…</p><p>"Guilmon?" Takato opened his eyes blearily.</p><p>The red dragon's head stared at him from over the railings of his bed, startling him. He did the intelligent thing and fell out of his bed, landing with a thud on the ground.</p><p>"Ow!" the Tamer rubbed his aching butt. That was <em>not</em> a fun wakeup call. Despite the pain, he was still sleepy. Crawling back into bed looked really good right now. "Guilmon, what're you doing here? You're supposed to be in the park. How'd you even get up here?"</p><p>A moment of silence and then Guilmon rumbled, "I wanna play, Takatomon."</p><p>Takato picked himself off the floor, yawning.</p><p>"I thought you stopped calling me that."</p><p>"Sorry. Guess I forgot."</p><p>Takato shrugged, not noticing the slip. He vaguely wondered how Guilmon even got in the house, Takato reaching up to run his hands through his shock of hair as he yawned.</p><p>"How about tomorrow, Guilmon? I'm really tired right now."</p><p>"No, right <em>now</em>." Guilmon circled around him, and planted his wedge-shaped head in the small of the boy's back, nudging him. "We need to go to that tow – that tall thing. There's another one of <em>them</em>."</p><p>"A Digimon? Why didn't you just say that earlier? And what happened to wanting to play?" Takato was already throwing on his clothes, picking up his D-Arc. He attempted to get his cards together while pulling on his goggles.</p><p>"Play after."</p><p>"Which tower?" He finally managed to pull on his shoes, hopping on one foot. Guilmon stared at him with a blank expression until he rephrased his question. "Which tall thing?"</p><p>Guilmon pointed with a claw at the tall structure in the distance.</p><p>"That's Tokyo Tower! They're doing road construction there, Guilmon. It's gonna be closed off! And it's really far away!"</p><p>Guilmon shook his head, the pupils in his blue eyes contracting. "I can carry you and I can move fast. We <em>need</em> to go there."</p><p>"Okay. I guess I can't talk you into letting me go back to sleep?"</p><p>This was met by silence. Then that little curious cock of his head, almost bird-like.</p><p>Takato slung his box of cards under his arm, shooting a confused look at his Digimon. "That was a <em>joke</em>, Guilmon. What happened to your sense of humor?"</p><p>Guilmon only snorted. Takato shrugged and awkwardly got on the Digimon's back. Guilmon opened the window, stepping outside onto the shingled roof. He didn't have any trouble carrying his Tamer, despite the fact Guilmon wasn't much bigger than him. With a powerful leap, the red Digimon leapt to the next rooftop, only spending a few seconds to regain his balance before making another sudden leap. It was all Takato could do to hold on to Guilmon.</p><p>He didn't see any digital fog surrounding Tokyo Tower, but he didn't question his partner.<em> It might just be </em>near<em> the Tower…?</em> Takato trusted Guilmon to know what he was doing.</p><p>As they got closer to Tokyo Tower, the digital field became more visible. It actually small, compared to the other digital fields Takato had seen, but it definitely looked like digital fog.</p><p>"You ready?" Takato shouted above the wind rushing in his ears.</p><p>"Yup!" Another bound and they were sailing through the air.</p><p>"Great!"</p><p>Takato pulled down his goggles, clutching onto Guilmon as they landed with a jolt. <em>I don't remember Guilmon being a long jumper…I guess he got stronger and I never noticed it.</em> Guilmon leaped again, higher this time. Takato squinted as the lights of Tokyo Tower came closer.</p><p>He couldn't shake the feeling that there was something odd about Guilmon tonight, however. The feeling was growing stronger as they headed straight for a landing in the digital field. <em>Something's wrong…</em></p><p>It suddenly struck him the moment they flew into the digital field.</p><p>Guilmon never had blue eyes.</p><p>
  <em>This isn't Guilmon!</em>
</p><p>There wasn't any wild Digimon in the digital fog. He didn't have time for any other thought as the two vanished into the false digital field.</p><p>When the fog cleared, there was no sign of Takato or Guilmon.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Absence and Delay</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Tamers find out about Takato's disappearance. Yamaki juggles Hypnos and its work on the supercomputer codenamed "JUGGERNAUT".</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/><strong>Author's Note</strong>: Digimon Tamers, centered around Takato and Jenrya (and one more character). Switches to the other characters from time to time. Takes just before Yamaki sets forth his Juggernaut plan (like, a day or two before the Juggernaut is activated. Don't really know the exact episode, guess between Episodes 12 and 14) <strong>departs from canon from there and goes off in a different direction. </strong></p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Chapter 2 – Absence and Delay)</strong>
</p><p>Another sunrise.</p><p>Renamon hid a smile, the fox-Digimon leaning back as the first sliver of light cut across the horizon. She had a good view of the city from where she sat on the wall, her paws swinging against the surface, with Ruki's house only a few yards away. It was a morning ritual, sitting on the wall before everyone else was awake and watching dawn approach. The lightening sky illuminated the expanse of the city, reflecting off shingled rooftops.</p><p>So peaceful. It wasn't that she <em>disliked</em> being Ruki's partner (the exact opposite, actually), but sometimes she felt she needed to be alone to think about things she felt Ruki probably wouldn't understand. There were simply some things she knew she couldn't talk about with her partner. Renamon shook her snout. <em>Still, most of the time up I'm up here, I don't think of </em>anything<em>.</em> <em>Guess I can't just admit I like watching the sunrise.</em></p><p>The Digimon drew up her long hind legs to her chin, wrapping her arms around them, Renamon's claws reaching up to scratch her neck. The sun continued to rise, a stray gust of wind rustling the trees within the courtyard. She glanced over at the rustling foliage, smirking.</p><p>"Are you quite done with sneaking about?"</p><p>There was a harsh bark of laughter from the tree. "I'm gettin' a kick watchin' ya get all angsty out here. Yer no better than that human of yers."</p><p>Renamon shrugged, her fur rippling with the movement, "I would hardly call this being 'angsty'. More like appreciating beauty."</p><p>"Yeah, right, call it whatever ya want."</p><p>Renamon turned back to watching dawn break. "Why don't you come out and join me? I don't bite."</p><p>Suspicious silence, followed by another rustling of leaves. The owner of the voice stepped out, the branch bowing under Impmon's weight as he hopped lightly from the tree to the top of the wall. The black virus-Digimon planted his gloved paws on his hips as he swaggered toward the other Digimon.</p><p>"I'd like to see ya try to eat me," Impmon sniffed.</p><p>"You're not worth the effort."</p><p>Impmon plopped down on the wall next to her.</p><p>"Ya still hangin' out with those dumb humans?"</p><p>"You still full of hot air?" Renamon replied pleasantly.</p><p>Impmon scowled at her retort, but said nothing in return. He rubbed absently at the face pattern on his stomach, staring at the rising sun. Renamon didn't attempt to pick up the conversation, her bushy tail swishing behind her. She didn't know why Impmon decided to drop in and she wasn't particularly interested in knowing either. She found him to be rather irritating, although she had (surprisingly) some fairly intelligent conversations with him in the past. At the moment, she didn't feel like bantering.</p><p>The sun was almost completely up. She was going to have to get down off the wall before people started going outside. It wasn't a good idea to let people see her.</p><p>"I don't suppose ya got the brains to ask me why I came here, d'ya?"</p><p>"I can't say I care what you came here for."</p><p>Impmon kicked his feet against the sloping shingles, wearing a smug expression on his face, "Oh, I wouldn't get yer fur coat all bunched up just yet, Renamon. I just thought I'd share with ya something interesting I saw last night, but I guess yer not interested."</p><p>Renamon was sorely tempted to roll her eyes at this. <em>Oh, let me guess, this is probably something that will supposedly convince me to abandon Ruki. Doesn't he ever learn?</em></p><p>"Surprise me," she said dryly.</p><p>Impmon crossed his arms across his chest. "Well, well, well, so ya <em>are</em> interested. Ya plannin' to pay me for this information? It ain't free."</p><p>"Pay you? What could a Digimon like you possibly want money for?"</p><p>Impmon got to his feet huffily. He glared at Renamon.</p><p>"Money? Who said anything about money? I'm talkin' about bringin' me some grub!"</p><p>"You can't get your own food?"</p><p>Impmon sneered. He was starting to lose his patience. "Look, d'ya wanna know or not?! I think this is something you or rather, that 'Tamer' of yours, are goin' to <em>really</em> want t'know!"</p><p>Renamon considered this. Her curiosity was starting to get the better of her and she wondered what exactly Impmon had to tell her that was so important. What did he have to say that could possibly interest Renamon or Ruki? <em>Maybe I should hear him out. At least his ramblings should prove to be amusing at the very least.</em> Besides, Ruki's grandmother had made a huge dinner for the family last night. Renamon was sure no one would mind if some of the leftovers were gone.</p><p>"I don't suppose you happen to be partial to shrimp dumplings," Renamon glanced sidelong at the other Rookie. "Do you?"</p><p>"I might be." Impmon turned away indifferently, but the growling of his stomach betrayed his true feelings. He froze.</p><p>"Might be, huh?" Renamon stood up, bearing her small fangs in a grin. "Sounds like it's more than a 'might be'."</p><p>Impmon only grunted.</p><p>"Wait here."</p><p>Renamon hopped down from the wall and vanished. She reappeared in the house's pantry, her paws landing lightly on the polished wood. <em>Where did they put those dumplings?</em> She struggled awkwardly with the doors, her large paws and claws proving to be unwieldy with the small human handles of the cabinet. No, not here. The fox-Digimon turned and began searching through the darkened room, her keen eyes having little trouble seeing her surroundings. <em>What about that cold box? What does Ruki call it - the "re-frig-er-a-tor"? Yes, I think that's it.</em> She turned and opened it.</p><p>"Ah." Renamon pulled out the small plate, spotting the familiar shape of the dumplings through the plastic wrap.</p><p>She vanished again, reappearing behind Impmon. His eyes visibly lit up at the sight of the shrimp dumplings</p><p>"Here." She held out the plate.</p><p>Impmon snatched the platter from her, tearing through the plastic wrap. He began to shovel cold dumplings into his mouth. Renamon crouched down beside him, waiting, until, with a satisfied burp, the smaller Digimon handed back the empty plate. He wiped his mouth with the back of one gloved paw, brushing away the crumbs.</p><p>"Well? What is it you have to tell me?"</p><p>Impmon let out another tiny belch. "Hold yer horses, I'm gettin' to it."</p><p>He stood up, taking his time as he stretched his black limbs lazily.</p><p>"Just a little bit of advice. Ya might wanna check out that building those humans call Tokyo Tower. Might find something interesting there."</p><p>"Like what?"</p><p>Impmon shook a finger at Renamon. "Oh, I'm not gonna spoil the surprise. Just sayin' ya should check it out. Might want to call those other loser 'Tamers', if ya can find <em>all</em> of 'em." He smugly made it obvious he knew more than he was letting on.</p><p>"That doesn't help."</p><p>"I ain't here to help ya." Impmon pushed himself of the wall and down onto the pavement below. "But thanks for the shrimp."</p><p>Renamon watched him saunter down the sidewalk, bewildered. What could have happened at Tokyo Tower? She knew the building had been closed for several months for renovation (Ruki made a remark about it a while ago – as far as she knew, no one had entered or exited the building for months and there was no work being done whatsoever) and now there was something having to do with repaving the roads, which further closed off the Tower.</p><p><em>Besides, from what I know of Impmon, he usually doesn't try to help us out unless it's really something important.</em> <em>He may be tiresome, but as far as I know, he hasn't lied to us…</em></p><p><em>Maybe I </em>should<em> tell Ruki about this. If a Digimon's running about, it could get messy.</em></p><hr/><p>Jenrya quickly glanced down at his watch. Almost eight. <em>Shoot, I shouldn't have overslept!</em> He needed to pedal a lot faster if he wanted to make it to school on time. It didn't help Terriermon was riding in his backpack. The boy leaned forward as his bicycle careened down the sidewalk.</p><p>"Hey, could you slow down? I'm about to get carsick back here!"</p><p>"Sorry, Terriermon, but I'm gonna be late for school. Besides, you can't get carsick. You're not even in a car."</p><p>"Fine, then I'm gonna get bicycle-sick."</p><p>"Look, I can't slow down. Being late for class is one thing, but being late for school is totally different!"</p><p>He could see his school in the distance. Terriermon mumbled something in response and slid further into his backpack. He was still sleepy and looking forward to taking a nap in the warm backpack, a luxury his human didn't have. Jenrya took another glance at his watch. At least ten minutes before the bell rang. He'd have enough time to get to class and in his desk, though he'd be pulling it really close.</p><p>
  <em> What was it with pulling things really close these days? First the Digimon battles, and now school.</em>
</p><p>He wheeled his bicycle through the gates, heading where other children with bikes were heading.</p><p>" 'Morning, Jenrya."</p><p>Jenrya got off his bike and nodded to the other student. " "Morning, Kenta."</p><p>The Tamer bent to snap the lock of the chain around his bicycle, as Kenta stepped back. Jenrya didn't really know Kenta that well. Sure, he had some classes with him, but other than the fact Kenta was one of Takato's other friends, Jenrya couldn't say he knew that much about him.</p><p>After a minute of Jenrya fiddling around with the lock, Kenta cleared his throat.</p><p>"Hey Jenrya, uh, I don't suppose you've seen Takato, have you?"</p><p>Jenrya looked up from the lock. "No. Why?"</p><p>"Well, he was supposed to meet me and Hirokazu in the park today to return my Power-Booster card. He didn't come so I was wondering if you walked with him to school or anything."</p><p>"I haven't seen him." Jenrya said. "Maybe he slept in on accident."</p><p>"Oh, shoot." Kenta frowned. He suddenly brightened, "Hey, can you do me a favor?"</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>"Could you tell Takato to meet me and Hirokazu at the park after school? Kinda need that card."</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>Kenta took off then, freeing him up to book it to class. Jenrya hurried to his desk near the back of the room. The other students were slowly drifting toward their seats. He pulled out his notebooks from his backpack, almost grinning at the sight of Terriermon snoring softly among his folders and the sweater he packed. <em>Aw, just like a big teddy bear, if teddy bears suddenly turned green and sprouted rabbit ears. </em>A glance out the window showed a sky that was cloudless, with only a light breeze.</p><p>Jenrya turned his head to look at Takato's empty desk a few seats away. He swiveled forward as the bell rang. Okay, Takato was officially late.</p><p>"Class, quiet down!" The history teacher stepped in, closing the door behind him. He pushed up his glasses to the bridge of his nose, and moved behind his desk. The laughter died down as he glanced about the room, "Hmm, looks like everyone's here except for Takato. Who has their Meji timelines? Let's see a show of hands."</p><p>Most of the class raised their hands. The few who didn't looked sheepish or panicked: they probably procrastinated or forgot about the assignment altogether.</p><p>Mr. Mori counted the hands and nodded with approval.</p><p>"Good. That's most of you. I want you to pass them up to the front of your row. As for you who didn't do your timelines, I'm disappointed. I gave this project out a week ago and said repeatedly it'd be due next Thursday. I'll be giving out extra credit, but I don't want you thinking you can all slack off because I'm doing this. I'll let this go for now, but I want all of you that didn't turn in this project to start writing your assignments down in your homework folders from now on. I know you're still kids, but you're going to be teenagers, so you're going to have to treat school seriously."</p><p>He gestured to his desk. "Please put the timelines up here."</p><p>As soon as the boys and girls in the front row set the packets of paper on his desk, Mr. Mori rubbed his hands together.</p><p>"Class, turn to page seventy-five. I'll give you until eight-thirty to finish the section and then I'll answer any questions you have." Mr. Mori sat down in his chair, the wheels squeaking as his weight settled into it. He picked up a marker and picked up the first paper from the stack.</p><p>Jenrya reached under his desk and pulled out the history book. As he started reading on the chapter, he couldn't help glancing over repeatedly at Takato's empty seat. <em>Where </em>is<em> he?</em> Jenrya's eyebrows furrowed as he turned the page. Takato was rarely, if ever, absent from school. He seemed perfectly fine the day before, so he probably wasn't sick.</p><p>Jenrya looked up as the door to the classroom slid open and one of the women he recognized as security let herself in. He wondered who was in trouble now, because the Ms. Hanatora only came into classrooms to talk to problem children. At least, that was what he heard.</p><p>He watched out of the corner of his eyes as Ms. Hanatora tapped Mr. Mori on the shoulder, then ducked his head and pretended to look busy as the history teacher scanned the room.</p><p>"Jenrya, please come up here. Ms. Hanatora wants to talk to you."</p><p>He froze. At first, he wasn't sure he'd heard right. Did Mr. Mori just say security was here pull him out of class? No, that couldn't be right. He was pretty sure he hadn't done anything wrong. Unless…<em>maybe it's about the wild Digimon? They might think </em>I'm<em> the one at fault! How am I gonna explain all this?</em> He stood up despite his doubts, and made his way to the front of the classroom, ignoring the giggles and sniggers and whispered questions.</p><p>"Way to go, Jenrya!"</p><p>"Good one, Lee!"</p><p>"Hey, what'd you do?"</p><p>Jenrya tried to control the burning flush of embarrassment he could feel rising on his face. He turned his back on the rest of the class, hoping vaguely that if he couldn't see them, they couldn't see him. Stupid theory, actually, but it made him feel a little better.</p><p>"You're Jenrya Lee?" Ms. Hanatora, a short woman wearing her trademark French braid, asked.</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"I want to ask you a few questions outside, okay, Jenrya?"</p><p>"Okay. Sure."</p><p>"Follow me." She turned on her heel, opening the sliding door as he shuffled warily after her. The woman closed the door after him and turned to face him. The indoor corridor was empty, leaving only her and Jenrya.</p><p>Her stern face relaxed slightly as she saw the stiff expression on his face, "Relax. You're not in trouble."</p><p>Ms. Hanatora continued, crossing her arms across her chest, "As I said before, I want to ask you some questions. I've been told you know Takato Matsuda, Jenrya. You're best friends, right?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"Did he ever say anything about going to someone's house? When did you last see him?"</p><p>"No. Um…yesterday, right before the last class." <em>What's going on?</em></p><p>"His gym class. Did he say anything out of the ordinary?"</p><p>"Nope. I mean, I don't think so. We talked about homework."</p><p>"So he wasn't acting strange or doing anything he wouldn't normally do?"</p><p>"No."</p><p>Ms. Hanatora nodded, "So he was perfectly fine… he didn't talk to anyone you didn't know?"</p><p>Jenrya shook his head.</p><p>"You didn't see any strangers watching him, did you?"</p><p>"No." Jenrya frowned, "Uh, can I ask why you're asking me all these questions?"</p><p>The security guard stared at him for a long moment with an expression that was clearly wondering if she could trust him or not. He did his best to look trustworthy. She sighed, giving in.</p><p>"Takato Matsuda's missing. His parents just called in."</p><p>"He's <em>missing</em>?!" Jenrya gaped. This was the last thing he expected.</p><p>Hanatora ran a hand through her bangs, showing her stress for the first time. "...Yes."</p><p>"When?" His heart felt like it was skipping all over the place. Missing? Like, run-away missing?</p><p>"Since last night." Ms. Hanatora started to massage her temples. "But his parents aren't completely sure what happened. They had dinner with him and his mom said she even tucked him in bed, but when she went to wake him up this morning, the window was open and he was gone."</p><p>Jenrya couldn't say anything, too stunned to come up with a reply. He had to remind himself to breathe. This news hit him harder than he would've thought, and his imagination suddenly decided to run crazy, bringing up all sorts of unpleasant images. Ms. Hanatora noticed his expression and placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. "It's going to be okay, Jenrya. He's probably just gone to a friend's house or something. We'll find him."</p><p>She turned him toward the classroom, both hands steering him. "Look, I want you to go back to class. Keep this to yourself. If there's any more news, I'll come for you, okay? He sounds like he's a smart, stable kid."</p><p>"Yeah…"</p><p>"Exactly. He's not going to do anything stupid. His parents have called the police. Everything's under control."</p><p>Hanatora opened the door. "Don't worry. It's Going To Be Fine. Just concentrate on doing your school work, okay?"</p><p>Jenrya was propelled back into the classroom. Dazed, he slipped back to his seat, oblivious to the questions of the neighboring students. He was having a hard time comprehending what was happening. Takato, <em>missing</em>? Had he run away? Or worse? A sudden thought. Ms. Hanatora said the window to Takato's room had been left open. Had he…jumped? <em>No</em>, the logical part of Jenrya's mind answered, <em>otherwise they would've found a big mess on the sidewalk</em>. They wouldn't bother looking for Takato if he was a splat on the ground. So where was he?</p><p>He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. One thing at a time. Count to ten. <em>Calm down</em>. <em>He's not </em>dead<em>. He's just missing</em>. Knowing Takato, he wouldn't be surprised if he'd wandered over to someone's house. That or he'd probably run after some wild Digimon and ended up on the other side of the city. <em>That's probably it. That's what happened when Growlmon digivolved, wasn't it? </em></p><p>Wait a minute, what about Guilmon? Takato wouldn't have done anything without him. Maybe he knew where Takato was<em>. </em>Jenrya glanced again at Takato's empty desk as the teacher began to drone on about the changes in culture during the Meiji era. No goofy, goggle-headed kid hunched over his desk and doodling pictures of Digimon. No notes filled with funny pictures of the Tamers in battle being tossed onto Jenrya's desk.</p><p>Again, Jenrya told himself to be calm. <em>I have to think of this on another level too…if Takato's missing, this also means we're short one Digimon as well, because I don't think Guilmon's going to want to fight without Takato. </em><em> The wild Digimon we fight only seem to be getting stronger – we need all the help we can get.</em> Jenrya pretended to pay attention to Mr. Mori's lecture, still wanted to bury his face in his hands and push away his frustration. He couldn't ignore the fact Takato had, more than once, saved both Ruki and Jenrya when things seemed hopeless. It was partially due to Takato's pushing and prodding that he'd been able to trust Terriermon and allow him to digivolve to Gargomon. Guilmon, when he digivolved, was extremely powerful as Growlmon as well. Jenrya could always count on Takato and Guilmon to back him up if Terriermon couldn't handle the situation by himself.</p><p>Now Takato was missing – he wasn't sure how long.</p><p>"You're all going to need to remember these ten important similarities between the Meji era and our time." Mr. Mori was pointing at something he had written on the whiteboard, twirling the dry-erase marker in his hand. "We're going to be wrapping up our section on the Meji era by Wednesday. Be prepared for an exam on chapters fourteen to sixteen."</p><p>Jenrya looked up at the clock. The class – to his surprise – was almost over. He'd been so preoccupied that he hadn't noticed the time go by.</p><p>"No homework tonight." Mr. Mori waited until some of the cheers died down, turning around and eyeing the clock. He swiveled to face the class again, and smiled. "See you all tomorrow. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"</p><p>Jenrya stood up and followed the other kids out, his eyes downcast. For the first time in his life, he was completely unsure what he was going to do next.<em> How should I deal with this?</em></p><p>
  <em>All I know is that I'm going to have to tell Ruki and Guilmon, but then what?</em>
</p><p>A question he knew he didn't have an answer to.</p><hr/><p>Yamaki fought to keep his face impassive. If he had a choice in the matter, he wouldn't have to deal with these squabbling fools. They knew nothing about the importance of Hypnos, and rarely, if ever, took his warnings seriously. It was a pain to deal with them, but Yamaki already knew he didn't have much of a choice. They did, after all, have a heavy hand in his funding. If it hadn't been for their reserves, Yamaki knew he wouldn't have been successful in managing the organization. Hypnos wouldn't have even gotten off the drawing board if he hadn't gone to the four for sponsorship. </p><p>He had been inside Hypnos for only an hour and already he'd been called into a meeting. Normally he would take his time but he was told the meeting would be dealing with his request to change the Juggernaut initiation schedule.</p><p>Which was why he was struggling now to keep a neutral expression as Hypnos's sponsors bickered back and fourth on the large screen in front of him. He'd been sitting in front of the conference screen for half an hour now without any actual answers. His fingers drummed on the armrest.</p><p>" – it's always golf, golf, golf!" The woman said in her grating, high-pitched voice. Yamaki never bothered to attach a name to her face, and so he now tagged her with a new name: Ms. B. He thought sourly.<em> B for Bitch.</em></p><p>"Nothing wrong with enjoying my vacation," replied the other mildly. <em>You're a fool</em>, Yamaki said mentally at him,<em> so you're Mr. F.</em></p><p>"Now's not the time for arguing," added in another, more chubby man from the bottom screen, fiddling with the tip of his scraggly beard. He had barely managed to squeeze his bulk into the chair he was now sitting in, dusting his suit with a layer of powdered sugar from the pastry he was holding in one hand.</p><p><em>Oh, </em>this<em> fat ass's easy.</em> <em>He has no clue what's going on</em>. Yamaki could see that he had blundered his way through life. Completely oblivious to everything. No doubt he inherited his position, because Yamaki couldn't see how the man could have possibly risen to power on his own. <em>He's more suited to stuffing his face than running a company,</em> Yamaki noted, <em>the Blundering Pig</em>.</p><p>The fourth sponsor's window on the large screen was located in the upper left-hand corner. He leaned forward, adjusting the small glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. Besides the fact his face was completely forgettable, Nagamora was probably the most focused of the group, although he had a tendency to blend into the background. It wasn't an infrequent occurrence for everyone to forget he was there, ironic considering he was the one with the most hands in the Hypnos cookie jar. Yamaki never forgot who wielded the most power of the three sponsors. Without Nagamora, Hypnos would fold in on itself. </p><p>Nagamora was the only one Yamaki had anything that looked like respect for. He still owed him. Without Nagamora, he wouldn't be heading Hypnos.</p><p>"This isn't the place for petty bickering," Nagamora said. Before anyone could reply, he turned his attention on Yamaki. "Yesterday, you filed a request for a change in the Juggernaut schedule. What day did you want to change the initiation to? Tuesday?"</p><p>"Monday," Yamaki corrected him.</p><p>"Monday then."</p><p><em>"Monday</em>?!" B exploded, her thin lips puckering. She looked ready to gouge out the screen with her manicured nails. "Are you crazy?"</p><p>"I don't think he's crazy, Lynn," interjected F calmly.</p><p>Nagamora ignored them. "Monday's just not possible, Yamaki." He held up his hand before he could demand why. "In fact, the original Friday date isn't going to be any good either. Looking at your reports, it appears the Juggernaut isn't 100% complete." He glanced expectantly at the screen square next to his.</p><p>B spoke up, taking the cue and slipping back into business. "I've gone over the reports as well, and I agree. With how much resources we've pooled into Hypnos it must be complete."</p><p>The other two representatives nodded.</p><p>Nagamora went on. "If we were to reschedule things, that means we would need to pour more funds into this little project of yours simply so we can get the Juggernaut fully operational. That means we'd have to hire more personnel for you to complete the Juggernaut. Sustaining the Juggernaut's power source itself is already costing us more than your original projection."</p><p>"From what I've seen, there hasn't been much of a threat from these digital monsters of yours," the Blundering Pig remarked. He dabbed at his scraggly beard with a paper napkin, dusting his pants further with sugar.</p><p>"We simply <em>don't</em> have the funds to speed up the work on the Juggernaut, Yamaki. We don't even have enough to meet the Friday deadline."</p><p>Yamaki frowned. "But –"</p><p>"It's already been decided. We're going to continue to fund Hypnos, but production on the Juggernaut must stop. It's eating up too much manpower and money."</p><p>Yamaki almost blew up at Nagamora. Somehow he managed to keep a straight face. He couldn't, however, control the small muscle that ticked in his cheek. "When can I expect the Juggernaut to be complete?"</p><p>"If we continue to run into these problems, probably a year or two."</p><p>"A <em>year</em>!" Yamaki exclaimed.</p><p>"But that's just an estimate, Yamaki. I personally believe it will only be a few months. We need some time to get our own matters back on track." Nagamora smiled, "Besides, what's a few more months? I'm sure you can handle any more of these digital monsters if they crop up."</p><p>B grinned snidely, "Maybe by then I'll finally be able to see one of these things for myself."</p><p>Yamaki said nothing, thinking this over. So that's how it was. They were having their own problems and decided to sweep his "little" organization under the rug until they dealt with their issues. There was no point in exploding at them, though he was tempted to. If the Juggernaut was completed and functional, then Hypnos would be obsolete because all the Digimon would be deleted, <em>gone</em>. They apparently didn't see it would cost more to continue to sponsor his organization then to just finish the huge machine.</p><p>To make it even more infuriating, he couldn't go to anyone else for sponsorship. Nagamora was the only one who took the threat seriously and he had all the right connections.</p><p>Still…if Hypnos could still receive money somehow, like through a third party, things could get back on track. If he kissed the right asses. Maybe it would be possible to complete the Juggernaut without their aid –</p><p>His idea was blown completely to pieces as Nagamora continued, "In the meanwhile, the Juggernaut is to be sealed up until then."</p><p>Yamaki stared, halfway out of his seat. No, he couldn't be serious! Didn't he see the Juggernaut was a weapon that would drive away those Digimon once and for all? And they didn't know yet about the Wild One that got through yesterday, that it passed through the Juggernaut. Yamaki's loud protest was on the tip of his tongue. <em>Knowing them, I bet they're sealing it up right now.</em> Despite the arguments, the four sponsors weren't slow to put words into action.</p><p>Nagamora knew him better than the other Four did and knew he would've attempted to disobey orders. <em>So he's one step ahead of me.</em> Yamaki should have known better. He cursed his own judgment. He'd assumed since Nagamora looked bland and forgettable, he would be happy to let this sit for a week or so. When the Four wanted to move, they could move and did.</p><p>They had to have someone in Hypnos keeping a close eye on him. Nagamora was obviously the leader of the Four: the other three were probably just cronies put in to fill the positions. Yamaki knew he'd be caught the moment he attempted to break into the Juggernaut's room to complete its construction. He was again reminded of the fact he hadn't been the one to hire all those security personnel watching the building. He didn't particularly care to be replaced by anyone else either, which was exactly what would happen unless he complied with orders. Nagamora, for whatever reason, didn't trust him for once. All that talk about saving Earth from the digital threat and now he was getting sidelined. What was more important than making sure the Digimon problem was solved for good?</p><p>He sank back into his seat, disgruntled.</p><p>Nagamora nodded again, still wearing the fatherly expression. "You have to understand this must be done, Yamaki. If your project drains the reserves, then where will Hypnos be? Nowhere, which is something I don't think you or I would look forward to. Hypnos can really go somewhere…with the right management, that is."</p><p>B only smirked, saying nothing. F eyed his bag of golf clubs longingly. The Blundering Pig finished off his pastry.</p><p>"Are you saying I'm not suitable for this position?" Yamaki asked.</p><p>"Oh, no, of course not. You were chosen for a reason. But we mustn't rush things." Nagamora said soothingly, "I have a feeling we can recover quickly. We will resume the completion of the Juggernaut. It's just now isn't the time. Understand?"</p><p>"Yes."<em> <br/></em></p><p>"Good." Nagamora's screen flickered and shut off, followed by the other three. The conference room was again bathed in darkness, save for the tiny digital command line blinking at the bottom of the large screen.</p><p>Yamaki reached over and turned off the monitor. Leaned back into his seat again. He definitely wasn't happy with the way things were turning out, but it looked like he was going to have to comply. He didn't have much of a choice. Yamaki desperately wanted to get angry, to blow up at something, but he decided he was going to need a different approach. After all those times at losing self-control at those meetings, he hadn't managed to pound his warnings into their skulls. Even Nagamora wasn't backing him up like he used to. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out his lighter and a pack of cigarettes.</p><p>He hadn't smoked in years, but he needed to think.</p><p>Because unless he did something, more Digimon would cross into the Real World. He had carefully omitted from his reports that the frequency of the monster appearances was growing. The Yuggoth system alone wouldn't be able to deal with them if things kept at this rate, especially if the Juggernaut was out of commission. The data would continue to slip through his grasp into the Real World. </p><p>He let out a curl of smoke, staring off into the darkness meditatively. So he was going to have to rely on the Yuggoth system for a few more months, at least until he found a way around the obstacles closing off the Juggernaut from him and his goal. He was going to have to deal with the creatures until then.</p><p>The very idea that those obscene collections of data would be running around for a few more months already made his skin crawl.</p><hr/><p>"Something wrong? Come on, Jenrya, I'm asking you a question!"</p><p>Jenrya frowned, trying to wave Terriermon away. He started to reach over and tug at the boy's pant-leg, causing the Digimon to lean into view. Jenrya shook his head down at his partner. If he continued to try to rattle off questions at the Tamer, someone was bound to see or hear him.</p><p>"Hold on a second."</p><p>Terriermon huffed, flopping down to sit against the wall. He always got like that when Jenrya was busy and not answering his questions, leaving him out of the loop.</p><p>"Look, I'll tell you as soon as I'm done."</p><p>The Tamer stood in front of the payphone. Jenrya knew he should be in the classroom eating with the other kids. Skipping lunch was the least of his problems; he was more concerned with contacting Ruki. Jenrya balanced haphazardly on one leg, holding the phone book on his other knee. He checked his watch. Lunch break had just started. There was a little bit of time before he got caught, so he had to use his time wisely. </p><p>
  <em> Ruki, Ruki…I think her family name's Makino. </em>
</p><p>Jenrya turned the page, holding the phone pinned between his ear and shoulder as he searched for the other Tamer's number. He wasn't expecting Ruki to actually pick up the phone, but he hoped her parents or someone would be able to give him her cell. It'd be just his luck if she didn't have a cell phone or had turned it off.</p><p>There it was. Ruki Makino. He slipped in his change and dialed the number. Hoped he hadn't called the wrong house.</p><p>The tone rang and was picked up after the second ring.</p><p>"Hello?"</p><p>Jenrya didn't recognize the voice. It was an older woman, deeper in tone and certainly more open and friendly then the other Tamer's. "Hi, this's Jenrya Lee. I'm a friend of Ruki's." Okay, so he was stretching the truth just a little bit.</p><p>"Oh, I'm sorry, Jenrya, Ruki's not here, she's at school. I'm her grandmother."</p><p>"Is there any way I can contact her?" Jenrya asked. "I have to talk to her about something. It's sort've important."</p><p>"Well, she <em>does</em> have a cell phone…" Ruki's grandmother paused, and there was a rustling of paper from the other end of the line. "She sometimes turns it off though – she says it gets irritating."</p><p>"Is there any other way to contact her?"</p><p>"No, but I can still give you her number though."</p><p>"Thanks. That would really help."</p><p>More rustling of paper from the other end of the line. "Oh dear, I don't think it's here. Could you please hold on a minute, Jenrya? I think I left the phone number list in the kitchen."</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>Jenrya waited, turning away from the payphone and glancing around. The hall wasn't crowded – thankfully – so he probably wouldn't have to worry about anyone overhearing the conversation. One plus of the day: not only was Takato missing, but in all the rest of his classes, he had been either loaded down with homework and projects or made to participate in group work with partners who decided it would be better if he did all the work for them.</p><p>Ruki's grandmother picked up the phone again. "I'm sorry for making you wait, but I found the list."</p><p>She rattled off the cell number. Jenrya, glancing about, decided that his hand was the only available option, and began scrawling down the numbers on his palm.</p><p>"Do you need me to repeat it again?"</p><p>"No, I got it." Jenrya said, "Thanks. Sorry for making you go through all this trouble"</p><p>"Trouble? Oh, this isn't any trouble: I'm glad I could help," she trailed off, "It's just that we usually don't get that many calls for Ruk. Look, if you're ever in the area, please feel free to drop by. Ruki seems like such a lonely girl sometimes…I think she would enjoy the company."</p><p><em> I wouldn't know about </em>that<em>.</em> But Jenrya only said, "Maybe I will. Thanks again."</p><p>"You're welcome."</p><p>She hung up after they exchanged good-byes. The conversation had been short, which was good, considering Jenrya probably hadn't put in enough change in the payphone for anything longer. He fished about in his pocket for more money, still holding the phone on his shoulder.</p><p>"Jenrya, come on, what's going on?" Terriermon asked, keeping his voice low.</p><p>Jenrya slipped his change into the payphone's terminal.</p><p>"I'm calling Ruki, Terriermon," he whispered back.</p><p>"Why?"</p><p>"Something came up," Jenrya hesitated, realizing something as he punched in the number he wrote down on the palm of his hand. "Hey, I don't suppose you could help me out?"</p><p>"With what?" The Digimon perked up. He was getting bored sitting around.</p><p>"Could you look for Guilmon? I want you to tell him something for me."</p><p>"Okay."</p><p>"Tell him to meet me in the tunnel right after school," Jenrya pulled off his watch as he spoke, "I'm getting out a little late because I've got clean-up duty today. Here, I'm gonna give you my watch: oh, and take my lunch, too. He probably didn't get any bread from Takato today, so he's probably gonna be really hungry."</p><p>Terriermon took the watch, looping it around one ear. He then pulled out Jenrya's knapsack from his backpack, carrying it around his smaller shoulders like a large satchel. He fixed a look and a frown on his partner.</p><p>"You are going to tell me what's going on, won't you?"</p><p>"Yeah. Just not right now," Jenrya glanced down the hall, listening to the dialing tone, "Look, the hall's empty – you better get going. Try not to let anyone see Guilmon or you, okay?"</p><p>"Gotcha."</p><p>Terriermon headed down the hallway as fast as his stubby hind legs could carry him. He rounded a corner and disappeared from Jenrya's sight. The Tamer turned back to the payphone, hand tapping impatiently on the plastic receiver. <em>Come on, pick </em>up<em>.<br/></em></p><p>Someone finally answered, "What<em>?</em>"</p><p>Oh, that was definitely Ruki, right down to the ingrained irritation in her voice. Jenrya felt a little better. "Hey Ruki. It's Jenrya."</p><p>"What're you doing calling me, Jenrya? And how did you get my cell number? Class is about to start – you trying to get me in trouble?" Ruki demanded.</p><p>"Your grandmother gave it to me, first thing," Jenrya said patiently, "And no, I'm not trying to get you in trouble."</p><p>"I weird out the teachers enough as it is, even if they don't know I associate with you babies."</p><p>Jenrya ignored her words, instead continuing, "Actually, it's about Takato –"</p><p>She interrupted him, "Oh, did Gogglehead tell you to ask me to go on a date with him? Why don't you tell him I'd <em>love</em> to?" Ruki's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "You can also tell him I hate babysitting."</p><p>Jenrya sighed. Things were getting off on a bad start and it looked like Ruki was in a bad mood.</p><p>"No, he didn't ask me. You also seem to keep forgetting we're the same age as you, we're <em>not</em> babies. Now could you stop for a second and just <em>listen</em> to me?"</p><p>"Spit it out. And make it fast. I've got a quiz this period."</p><p>"I just found out this morning Takato's missing, Ruki. He didn't come to school today, I think he was gone since last night. His parents were calling the police from the principal's office."</p><p>Silence from the other end of the line. Jenrya took this as a cue to continue.</p><p>"I sent Terriermon to go meet up with Guilmon. Unless Takato took him with him, he's probably still in the park. Maybe Takato talked to him about running away or something, I don't know. The thing I don't get is <em>why</em> Takato would run away in the first place. I don't know if he took his D-Arc or not, or his cards, so I don't know if he went out after a Digimon or something. I know you don't really like Takato that much, but I think you need to know what's happened." Jenrya finished, stopping for breath.</p><p>More lengthy silence. Jenrya wasn't sure if Ruki was even on the line anymore.</p><p>"Hello? Ruki? You still there?"</p><p>"…yeah, I'm still here." Ruki sounded slightly subdued, "Was he freaking out on you or anything? Say anything un-Takato?"</p><p>"Nope. Just perfectly normal stuff, complaining about homework."</p><p>Ruki paused, as if thinking of something extremely unpleasant, "Maybe he…uh…"</p><p>"Killed himself? Nah, I already ruled that one out. They wouldn't bother searching for him and pulling me out of class if he did," Jenrya replied.</p><p>"You know, if Guilmon finds out, he's going to go crazy," Ruki remarked.</p><p>"Yeah, I know. I'm gonna go look for Takato after school," Jenrya said, "Look, I'm worried. About Takato <em>and</em> what we're gonna do against those wild Digimon."</p><p>"..I…um…I'll help you look for him. I don't <em>hate</em> him or anything…" another awkward pause, "Renamon might know something since she's always out at night."</p><p>"Thanks. Can you meet me at the tunnel?"</p><p>"Is it the one I think it is?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"Fine." The girl hesitated. She blurted, "Don't you <em>dare</em> tell Gogglehead I had this conversation with you!"</p><p>"I won't."</p><p>At least he had Ruki's help now. That made Jenrya feel a little better, but not by much.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>10/20/12 - Went in to fix up the formating. Also did some minor edits. Thanks for reading.</p><p>
  
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Kincaid</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Yamaki meets one of his new Hypnos staff, a young woman who's entirely too gung-ho about her job. Meanwhile, Takato wakes up and meets his kidnapper, a Digimon called Kaminmon.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/><strong>Author's Note</strong>: Digimon Tamers, centered around Takato and Jenrya (and one more character). Switches to the other characters from time to time. Takes just before Yamaki sets forth his Juggernaut plan (like, a day or two before the Juggernaut is activated. Don't really know the exact episode, guess between Episodes 12 and 14) <strong>departs from canon from there and goes off in a different direction. </strong></p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N    T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L   S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong><br/><br/>(Chapter 3 – Kincaid)</strong>
</p><p>Terriermon watched with wide eyes as Guilmon demolished Jenrya's lunch. He hadn't thought it was possible to eat that much food in three seconds, but Guilmon proved him wrong. <em>Jeez, he's got one big appetite</em>, he thought to himself, amazed. Guilmon sniffed about the empty knapsack, turning it over with his snout and then made a mournful sigh.</p><p>"No more food?"</p><p>"You ate all of it! Y'know, you're gonna get fat one day." Terriermon said. No way a Digimon could eat that much every day and <em>not</em> gain weight.</p><p>Guilmon shook his head, "Will not."</p><p>"Will too."</p><p>"Will not." Guilmon paced around the stone shed, tail swishing. "I never gain weight."</p><p>Terriermon scrunched up his black nose. He found that hard to believe: he knew <em>he</em> could never inhale so much food! Maybe it was because he was smaller. Guilmon was at least three times bigger than he was. Terriermon flopped down on the floor, leaning back on his paws. There wasn't much of a point in arguing, and besides, he was too bored to continue. At least he had some company. He never liked waiting for Jenrya to get out of P.E, but he didn't have much of a choice. Guilmon was easily better than hiding in a locker all day.</p><p>He happened to have a little thing against smelly lockers.</p><p>Terriermon reached up and removed the watch he left looped around his ears. It took an hour for him to get from the school to the park (small legs to thank for that) and he spent ten minutes trying to open the gate to the shed (short height to thank for <em>that</em>). He hadn't been able to reach the handle until Guilmon padded over to help.</p><p>He turned the watch over in his paws so the face was now toward him. He squinted, moving so he wasn't in the glare of the sun and could read it. Almost two. One more hour before Jenrya got out of school. The Digimon looped the watch around his right ear again, and stood up, stretching. Guilmon stopped pacing, turning his large eyes on Terriermon.</p><p>"You're leaving already?" he asked.</p><p>"Yup," Terriermon said, "But you're coming with me. We're meeting Jenrya."</p><p>Guilmon beamed. "Oh, are we playing? Tag, maybe?"</p><p>Terriermon laughed. That seemed like a really good idea! "I don't know. If we do, I don't wanna be It!"</p><p>Guilmon pushed open the barred gate, talking as he did so. "Okay, then I'll be It."</p><p>"You gotta give me a head start too. It's not fair 'cause I'm not as big as you."</p><p>"Okay. Thirty seconds." Guilmon started down the sloping stone steps. He hunched down to let the smaller Digimon climb up onto his scaled back. "So, where're we going?"</p><p>"You know that tunnel? The one Takato tried to hide you in?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"That one." Terriermon wrapped his tiny black claws around the ridges on Guilmon's back. "But I don't know if we're gonna have enough time to play Tag. I think this's some sort of meeting."</p><p>"Is it secret?"</p><p>Terriermon shrugged. "How would I know?"</p><p>Guilmon thought this over as he slipped through the trees, winding his way down the hill. The setting sun sent out beams of afternoon light shooting through the trunks and leaves, the two Digimon weaving through the shafts. "Oh, I can't wait!" Guilmon was saying, "First, when we get there, I'm going to ask why Takato didn't bring me anything to eat. Then, I'm going to tackle him!"</p><p>Terriermon blinked as he held on to the other. "<em>Tackle</em> him? Why? That sounds painful."</p><p>"Because I'm glad to see him. Why else?" Guilmon answered. He laughed, " 'Sides, Takato doesn't mind when I tackle him."</p><p>"Right…" Terriermon dubiously said. He didn't really buy that – after all, Jenrya complained when <em>he</em> leaped at him. Why would Takato feel any differently? Guilmon was so much bigger it <em>had</em> to hurt being tackled. Like getting run over by a small bulldozer, he imagined. A small, red dinosaur bulldozer. Terriermon tugged on Guilmon's wing-shaped ear as he started to step out from the thinning foliage. "No, Jenrya said we're supposed to stay hidden. Secret-like."</p><p>Guilmon bobbed his wedge-shaped head in a nod of understanding. "<em>Top</em> secret-like."</p><p>He turned around and trotted down through the bushes, making his own trail. The branches scratched against his hide. Guilmon hardly noticed, his thick scales proving to be imperious to snagging twigs. Terriermon ducked as one low branch swung past and sat up as they hurried through the greenery. Guilmon moved at a rapid pace, the muscles in his hind legs working as he trotted. They were making good time. Terriermon glanced at the sun, close to the jagged horizon of the sprawling city. It probably wouldn't take that long to get to the meeting place.</p><p>Guilmon hummed happily. He was looking forward to seeing Takato – maybe his friend would like to play with him later. It was fun playing with everyone else, but there was something special about having his partner all to himself.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki crushed the spent cigarette in the ashtray. He briefly considered lighting another one, but decided against it. Too many of these things would kill his lungs and he preferred to be able to breathe, thank you very much. He needed to throw away the rest of the pack, otherwise he'd just probably light another one on reflex. Easy to slip into old habits again.</p><p>Now Yamaki stood on the floor of the main deck. The Yuggoth system was still in working order. He almost expected they would've done something to it. After all, the Four had already sealed up the two floors the Juggernaut system occupied, and he had been concerned they might've decided to do the same to the Yuggoth. Thankfully, they left it untouched, no sign they even entered the room. Something he supposed he could be thankful for.</p><p>He looked at his watch as he crossed the command deck. A little past three. The techs just left to take their break. Yamaki glanced up at the sprawling dome where the multiple screens were glowing their normal blue and green. No sign of any attempts to bio-emerge, no warning sounds from the quietly beeping and buzzing machinery.</p><p>Yamaki reached up, pushing up his sunglasses. One of the new techs was climbing into one of the high-rising chairs, the first of the next shift. Reika called in earlier in the morning saying she would probably be late for her shift, so he had to call in one of the newer employees to take her place. This replacement had been hired only five months ago, he recalled, because he was pretty sure he had seen that cropped, almost neon-purple hair before. All he knew was that she was a foreigner, though her Japanese was nearly flawless. He couldn't for the life of him place that strange accent. What was her name? Something that started with a "K"? <em>Kincaid</em>, he suddenly remembered.</p><p>" 'Afternoon, Mr. Yamaki!" She called down as the chair began to lift into the air. "When did you start smoking?"</p><p>He nodded, a little surprised as he noticed he was still holding the opened pack in his hand. <em>Observant</em> <em>girl</em>, he noted.</p><p>"Since today."</p><p>Kincaid settled back into the chair, pulling on the goggles over her silver eyes. She leaned over her computer terminal and shook her head at the man standing below her. "That stuff's bad for you, sir!"</p><p>Yamaki felt a grudging smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Normally, he wouldn't allow unnecessary conversation between the workers and himself, but sometimes he'd let some of it slide by. She was good at her job and useful at other tasks, most likely why Nagamora sent her over as soon as soon as the construction on the Juggernaut began. Originally, she oversaw the production, but recently she was assigned to another station. If Yamaki remembered correctly, Kincaid had also been the one who adapted his vague idea of the Juggernaut into solid blueprints. Apparently she was skilled at multi-tasking, something Yamaki also approved of.</p><p>He had forgotten about her, what with all the bio-emerging Digimon. He reminded himself to consider her for a raise.</p><p>"I do. And I ignore them." Yamaki said, shoving the pack into his pocket. "How long's your shift, Kincaid?"</p><p>The reply drifted down. "Eight hours, Mr. Yamaki!"</p><p>"You've been stationed up there before?"</p><p>"Sure have. Twice. This is my third time."</p><p>Yamaki raised an eyebrow. "You know what to do?"</p><p>"I learn fast." A cheeky grin.</p><p>Yamaki shook his head. He didn't really like the idea of having someone with little experience on the Yuggoth deck, but he supposed Kincaid could use this as an opportunity to get used to the controls. It would be useful if he could have more people accustomed to the Yuggoth than just Reika and Kei.</p><p>"Yamaki!"</p><p>He turned around. A burly man jogged toward him, clutching several sheets of computer printouts in one hand. He couldn't recall the man's name, but Yamaki recognized him as one of the original Digimon programmers. He nodded in greeting as the programmer came to a stop before him, struggling to remember the other's name. His face remained an expressionless mask as he sized up the other man:</p><p>"Yes, what is it?" Yamaki asked.</p><p>"We've come across something which might explain why the Digimon seem to be appearing with increasing frequency."</p><p>He nodded. "And?"</p><p>"Actually, it's not really anything more than a theory, but," the programmer handed him the print-outs, "Take a look at this," he pointed at one of the sheets. "This is the total number of Digimon appearing nine months ago." He pointed again. "And this is the number of Digimon five months ago. And the Digimon appearances this month. Are you seeing a pattern?"</p><p>"They've tripled."</p><p>"My colleagues have been studying some other data – the recent weather, where these Digimon seem to be appearing, what…uh…'levels' these Digimon are when they appear – and we noticed something. First of all, almost all of the Digimon appear primarily in Japan, mostly here in Tokyo." The programmer reached over and pulled out another computer printout. "Nine months ago, only high-level Digimon were appearing. Recently, the weaker Digimon have also been appearing, as well as some of the stronger ones. The weather has also been acting in an abnormal fashion since then."</p><p>"It snowed at the end of the summer," Yamaki muttered to himself. He remembered how the media had a field day with that one. The same thing with the strange drought mid-October.</p><p>"Actually, we don't have any truly solid proof, but I've come up with an explanation for all of this but…ah, well, it <em>is</em> a little far-fetched."</p><p>Yamaki made an impatient gesture for the other to continue.</p><p>"I believe the barrier between our world and the digital one is weakening, which might explain why the Digimon appearances are increasing. It also explains the bizarre weather: contact with the digital plane just <em>might</em> throw the weather patterns off. I think Japan, no, Tokyo, is the focal point."</p><p>"So you're basically suggesting Tokyo is a convenient bridge? That Tokyo is where the Digital World and our own are closest to each other?"</p><p>"Basically. But we don't have solid proof, as I said before."</p><p>Yamaki grimaced, handing the papers back. "Makes sense to me. Do you think there would be any way to strengthen this hypothetical 'barrier' of yours?" <em>It might be easier to simply </em>block<em> the data from entering our world than just deleting all them. But if this "barrier" were weakening, then it would probably still continue to deteriorate, even if it was strengthened. From what he's described to me, it's almost like something's…</em>eating <em>away at this supposed "barrier"…</em></p><p>"I can't really say. It should be possible to fix the…" the burly man trailed off, at a loss for words.</p><p>"Tears?"</p><p>"Tears," the black man agreed. "The tears in the barrier. But if that was the case, it's also possible to open them further. The only thing I can be sure of is that it would take an incredible amount of energy. I don't even know if we have the technology to do any of this."</p><p>Yamaki shrugged. "That's not your concern. You should just focus on finding that code I requested." He paused. "But it was good you came to me about this. I want you and your team to pursue this idea of yours."</p><p>He turned away, leaving the programmer to return to his team. Kei was already climbing into her chair, the young woman glancing curiously over at Kincaid, who was in Reika's usual seat. Kincaid said something over her shoulder – probably a greeting, though he was too far to hear her words – and returned to her work, her gloved fingers flying over the terminal. Yamaki crossed his arms over his chest, lost in thought.</p><p><em>What if there </em>was<em> a way to completely block Digimon from our world? If deleting them wasn't the only way to get rid of them?</em></p><p>Yamaki wavered for a moment.</p><p>
  <em>No.</em>
</p><p><em> It doesn't matter what we do to these things. They're just packets of data, nothing more. These Digimon have caused more trouble then they're worth. They overstayed their welcome a </em>long<em> time ago! <br/></em></p><p>Blocking access to the Real World would be too lenient. Best to stick to the tried-and-true method of deletion. He couldn't afford to be soft.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Strangely enough, Takato's eyes hurt. Actually his whole body ached, but his eyes hurt the most. It felt like someone decided to take a couple of pins and poke some holes into them. As he slowly came to, he began to realize there was something wrong, completely ignoring the fact all his limbs were sore and the muscles in his back were utterly killing him for some unexplained reason. </p><p>In fact, the only thing he was sure of was he didn't want to get up. Something said he'd regret it.</p><p><em>Where am I?</em> Takato wondered. He started to become aware of his surroundings: of the small, sharp objects pressing themselves into the small of his back, the sense he was outside (last time he checked, his bed was indoors), and that someone was standing over him. This last observation made him uneasy – he instinctively knew this wasn't anyone he knew. This had to be (according to his parents' warnings) a <em>Stranger</em>.</p><p>He tried to move his legs. They refused to budge. Arms wouldn't either. </p><p>Ouch<em>. </em></p><p>Takato decided he needed to think: he didn't know how long he was out, though he had a feeling several hours passed. <em>Guilmon woke me up and then we were heading to Tokyo Tower…something was wrong though…</em>it was distracting, trying to think with a huge headache that was, at the moment, pounding his skull with a pair of heavy-duty hammers. More painful than the rocks digging into his back. <em>Ow …please let this be a bad dream…</em></p><p>"It's not."</p><p>Takato froze in mid-thought, unaware he'd spoken aloud, as the alien voice continued.</p><p>"You will be wishing it was, however." The voice was definitely not human, but he could hear the thinly veiled contempt.</p><p>The Tamer abruptly found himself wide-awake. His vision blurred. At first he didn't see the form towering over him as his vision swam. When he finally focused, he immediately wished he hadn't as he saw the owner of the voice. Takato tried to scramble away, panic making him unable to cut off his squeak of surprise. Before he could get far, a cloven hoof slammed down a few inches above his head. Takato froze again. If he'd moved a little bit faster, the force of the blow would've caved in his skull. He could only stare as the large, clear (and familiar) blue eyes drew closer, looking him over.</p><p>He belatedly recalled the past events. This was the Guilmon who came into his room and tricked him, the Guilmon-that-wasn't. The only thing certain was his captor was a Digimon.</p><p>The creature bore a resemblance between a mix of an antelope, a skeleton, and an exotic bird. Lightly feathered wings swept back from the long face of the Digimon in place of ears, the lips pulled back to reveal interlaced fangs and bare, glistening gums weeping with pus. Aside from the bright blue eyes, the only signs of color was the green tips of the thick fur jutting out from its jaw-line up to the monster's forehead – the markings surrounding its eyes were a dark black. From where he was lying on the ground, Takato couldn't see the rest of the Digimon and he wasn't sure if he really wanted to: his heart was still skipping in shocked circles from his first glimpse of the Guilmon-that-wasn't.</p><p>The Digimon pulled back his head, shaking out the long mane in a gesture of irritation. After a moment of deliberation, it stepped back as it craned its head to look over its bony shoulder, the sky-blue eyes glazing over for a long moment. The lengthening shadows threw themselves against the sloping floor – Takato could see that they were at the bottom of one of the dried out aqueduct lines running through the city.</p><p>The Digimon stood over him.</p><p>"Where is it?" It demanded. "Your Digivice! Where is it?"</p><p>Takato didn't know. He only had his D-Arc, though he couldn't feel its comfortable weight at his side.</p><p>He managed to shake his head frantically. There was something wrong with this Digimon, something different from those he had come into contact with. The Digimon leaned forward, fixing him with those piercing eyes and staring right at him. Before Takato could even blink, he suddenly went blind as a wave of disorientation surged through him, leaving him light-headed as it passed and he could make out the black and red spots dancing in his range of vision.</p><p>The Digimon cursed. "Of <em>course</em> you'd drop it. Humans!" It then made an apparent attempt to collect itself. "You're little more than an infant. An imperfect infant, at that. It is understandable for such a clumsy creature to make stupid mistakes."</p><p>It started to shimmer, the air around it sliding around the beast like a mirage. It bobbed its head in a nod, as if acknowledging some mental question.</p><p>"Our way has been prepared for us. Your 'D-Arc' can wait." A thin layer of fog crept toward the paralyzed Tamer and the Digimon. The very same fog Takato mistook earlier for a digital field, curling around the ground in fingers.</p><p>"We mustn't delay any further…<em>Divine Mist!</em>"</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya leaned against the wall of the tunnel and crossed his arms across his chest.</p><p>"What are you telling Guilmon?"</p><p>"I don't know, Ruki," Jenrya said. "He has to know, but I have no idea how to break it to him."</p><p>The other Tamer frowned as she paced before him. Ruki had been the first to arrive at the meeting place and was waiting until Jenrya could finally get out of cleanup duty and race over. Jenrya didn't see Renamon anywhere, but he knew she came with Ruki. She had a habit of appearing out of thin air. Jenrya watched wordlessly as Ruki turned in her tracks and began to pace past him again. He could see she was worried as well, but she was trying to hide it by looking impatient.</p><p>"Why aren't Terriermon and Guilmon here yet?" Ruki demanded, "They're late!"</p><p>"They're probably on their way right now, Ruki. It takes a while to get here from the park, remember?"</p><p>"Whatever."</p><p>"It's not whatever."</p><p>"Stop correcting me!"</p><p>Jenrya only shrugged again. Ruki scowled at his reaction and continued her pacing. <em>Acting like that won't automatically solve the problem.</em> Jenry thought<em>. If we're going to work together – as a </em>team<em>, for once – then we can't be having these arguments all the time. Teams work together. </em>And what was he going to tell Guilmon? He didn't really want to have a hysterical Digimon on his hands (it was hard enough keeping track of a <em>calm</em> one) but he did think Guilmon needed to know Takato had vanished off somewhere. Again, Jenrya had to wonder what his friend was thinking, disappearing like that. Was there a reason? Or did someone take him? Something?</p><p>Jenrya looked sharply up at the commotion further down the tunnel. Ruki stopped pacing, head turning and her hand reaching down for her D-Arc as the scuffling sounds drew closer. There was a muffled squawk of surprise, followed by silence. A few seconds later, Renamon padded into view, holding a squirming black Digimon at arm's length by the scruff of his skinny neck. She sported several scratches from her attempt to keep the Rookie from escaping.</p><p>"Found him sneaking about," said Renamon. "Personally, I don't like him listening in on our conversations."</p><p>"Lemme go! I swear, yer gonna be sorry!"</p><p>Jenrya blinked, eyebrow arching at the sight of Impmon.</p><p>"Ya want a Bada Boom up yer nose?!" Impmon continued to squirm, glaring like it was going out of style. "What're ya dumb kids looking at? You'd think yer idiot eyes never saw a Digimon before!"</p><p>Ruki shot the Rookie a withering look, but ignored him, turning toward Renamon. "What was he doing? Did he hear anything?"</p><p>"He was eavesdropping, so he probably heard quite a bit."</p><p>Jenrya spoke up. "What are we going to do with him? I don't think we need to delete him," Impmon made a muffled squeak at this remark, "over this."</p><p>"Delete him? Why would you delete him? We only delete mean Digimon."</p><p>Jenrya turned around at the sound of the new voice. Guilmon and Terriermon headed toward him from the shadows, the rabbit-Digimon perched on Guilmon's back. Guilmon kneeled down as they reached the group to allow Terriermon to jump to the ground.</p><p>"I didn't <em>say</em> we would delete him," Jenrya answered.</p><p>"Oh, that's good. Say, where's Takato? I still need to tackle him." This earned a snicker from Terriermon, who was now perched on Jenrya's head.</p><p>"Ah, about Impmon here…" Renamon hastily said, steering the conversation away from Takato. Ruki had filled her in earlier about the situation.</p><p>"He's harmless," Ruki smirked in disdain at Impmon's indignant expression.</p><p>Jenrya glanced over at Guilmon: he was looking around the tunnel for Takato, his snout turned up in an expectant toothy smile. <em>Shoot, I </em>know<em> this isn't going to go well. It might be a better idea to keep him in the dark for a little longer.</em> Still, maybe Guilmon could help them out. <em>Like, he could sniff out Takato by his scent or something…Takato did tell me Guilmon has a really strong nose.</em> He could tell the Digimon it was a game – the locate-the-Takato game – but then he knew he'd have a lot of explaining to do later. Which wouldn't be any fun at all: he wasn't sure if Guilmon would panic or get really angry and start lobbing Pyro Spheres at him.</p><p>"Hey, Guilmon, can you keep a eye on Impmon?" Jenrya asked. Guilmon glanced from the Digimon in Renamon's hold to the Tamer, "Don't let him run away or anything – we might have some questions we might want to ask."</p><p>"Okay." Guilmon fixed a golden eye on Impmon. The furiously struggling Impmon was transferred from Renamon to the other Rookie, the scratching paws of the small Digimon proving to be useless against Guilmon's scales. Guilmon padded off. Jenrya waited until he was pretty sure the Rookie was gone before turning around and drawing the others aside.</p><p>Terriermon non-too-gently thumped the top of his head with a paw. "<em>Now</em> are you gonna tell me what's going on?"</p><p>"Would you stop that? I was getting to it." Jenrya protested, making a half-hearted motion to pull the heavy Digimon off his head</p><p>Ruki rolled her eyes, and spoke up. "For your information, Terriermon, Takato ran away from home - "</p><p>"- You don't know if that's for sure," Jenrya interjected.</p><p>Ruki scowled. "Well, that's what <em>I</em> think he did." She planted a hand on her hip, turning back to Terriermon, "No one can find him. His parents called the cops and everything. We're gonna go looking for him."</p><p>The rabbit-Digimon perched on Jenrya's head fell silent, thinking this all over.</p><p>"Ms. Hanatora said his parents think Takato went missing since last night," Jenrya added.</p><p>"What about Guilmon?" Terriermon asked.</p><p>"I don't think any of us want to break the news to him," Renamon said from her place behind Ruki. "I don't suppose you want to volunteer?"</p><p>Jenrya could feel Terriermon shake his head vigorously. "No <em>way</em>! Find someone else!"</p><p>"Well, that doesn't help," Jenrya said, looking up at his Digimon. He shook his head, deciding to change subjects. "Renamon, Ruki says you might be able to help us."</p><p>"I can?" Renamon sent a slightly startled glance at her partner. <em>You'd think Ruki's never exchanged a nice word with her or something,</em> Jenrya thought sourly. Renamon recollected herself, and gave a small smile. "Perhaps I can, if Ruki feels that way."</p><p>"She said you're always out at night. Did you see anything?"</p><p>Jenrya felt his heart sink as Renamon shook her head.</p><p>"No, I wasn't anywhere near Takato's neighborhood last night. In fact, the only person I know who would have seen anything would be…" Renamon trailed off, her blue eyes suddenly narrowing as she thought of something. She pushed herself away from the wall. "Impmon! I knew he wasn't telling me everything!"</p><p>Ruki glanced over her shoulder with disapproval at her partner. "You talked with that small fry?"</p><p>"He was sneaking about as usual, Ruki. I can't stop him from going where he pleases." Renamon touched the young girl's shoulder to show she wasn't hiding anything, "But he did mention something that might be helpful."</p><p>Jenrya felt Terriermon fold his paws across the top of his head, as if his Tamer was some sort of desk. "What makes you think we can trust 'im?"</p><p>"I never said anything about trusting him. I merely said he told me something that might help us now," Renamon said, her tail swishing lazily behind her. "He babbled about seeing something interesting at Tokyo Tower," she waved a paw, "But he also made this odd remark: I think his exact words were 'might want to call those other loser 'Tamers', if you can find <em>all</em> of them'." Renamon held up her paws, seeing Ruki frown at this. "That's what he said. I have an excellent memory."</p><p>"That's some nerve for such a weak Digimon," Ruki growled.</p><p>Jenrya glanced down at the ground, trying to think. <em>So Impmon must've seen something, he </em>knew<em> Takato was missing when he talked to Renamon</em>. He didn't like this. Too many questions were cropping up, and all his old ones were still unanswered. And what did Tokyo Tower have anything to do with Takato? Takato lived far from the building. Had Impmon actually seen Takato leave? Or…maybe the Digimon had a hand (well, paw) in Takato's disappearance. Jenrya felt a surge of anger. He had never really liked Impmon and if he had been responsible for his friend vanishing like that…</p><p><em> No, burying him alive does </em>not<em> make things any better.</em></p><p>The annoying, nagging part of his brain told him he didn't know for sure if Impmon was to blame. Jenrya took a deep breath to calm himself. <em>I should be more concerned with finding Takato instead of searching for some scapegoat.</em></p><p>"Okay, so what're we going to do?" Ruki asked impatiently, her foot tapping against the floor of the tunnel.</p><p>"I guess we start searching." Jenrya said, "I think we should split up, we can cover more ground that way."</p><p>Renamon nodded in agreement. "That's a good idea. But the chances of us finding him are –"</p><p>" – I think we should go to Tokyo Tower to see if there's anything there!" Ruki interrupted her partner. "I was thinking we could take Impmon with us. He could answer our questions on the way there."</p><p>Jenrya dubiously put his watch back on. "He's not going to go with you willingly."</p><p>"He will or he's going to have to deal with Renamon. Right?"</p><p>"Right, Ruki." Renamon agreed.</p><p>"Don't do anything to him if you don't have to," Jenrya said. "No matter how irritating he can get, he's also a Digimon, flesh and blood."</p><p>Ruki rolled her eyes. "I think we're all very aware of that, Jenrya."</p><p>"So you, Renamon, and Impmon are going to this Tokyo Tower?" Terriermon asked, ignoring the Tamer's sarcasm. He continued when Renamon nodded, "Then I guess I'll be going with Jenrya and Guilmon."</p><p>"Should we meet here at another time?"</p><p>"Don't bother. If I find him, I'll call the two of you."</p><p>"I have your cell number, but I don't have a cell phone myself," Jenrya said. He looked down at his watch, "My parents said I <em>have</em> to be back before seven for my sister's birthday, so after then, you'll have to call my home number."</p><p>"What time is it now?"</p><p>"3:41."</p><p>Ruki exchanged glances with Renamon, "We'd better get moving. Where're you guys going?"</p><p>Jenrya paused. He hadn't given this thought yet: a remote place few people visited seemed like a good hiding spot.</p><p>"They've built a new park north of the Diet building. I'm going to try looking over there."</p><p>"Fine, then it's settled." Ruki turned toward Renamon, "Ready?"</p><p>"I'm ready when you are."</p><p>Ruki started down the tunnel, breaking into a run, followed by her partner Digimon. The two quickly disappeared into the shadows. <em>Guess we better get started.</em> Jenrya picked up his backpack, checking his pockets to make sure he had enough money for the subway fare. It would at least be an hour trip if the subway was crowded – it usually was after school and some of the grown-ups would be getting off from work right now. <em>Great. J</em>enrya loved standing pressed face-to-face with people he didn't know.</p><p>"I guess we'd better get going as well, Terriermon. Let's go get Guilmon."</p><p>"You gonna tell him?"</p><p>"…Not right now. I need him to help us out," Jenrya answered. He felt like such a jerk, always hiding things.<em> I'll tell him tomorrow morning</em>, he promised himself. <em>We might find Takato before then</em>.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <strong>Two hours later</strong>
</p><p>Things were going perfectly.</p><p><em>Well, as perfectly as they can go with all this planning, anyway</em>, she thought wryly. Kincaid glanced over her shoulder at the tech sitting in the other high-rise chair. Kei was bent over her work, her fingers tapping on the terminal and focused only on doing her job. Kincaid leaned over the side of her own chair, looking down. Yamaki had shooed away the rest of the techs and was now standing near the stairs, staring intently at the PDA in his hand. He was busy as well.</p><p>Neither would notice anything if she was quiet about it.</p><p>Kincaid hunched over her terminal. <em>He should be on his way. If only he hadn't decided to go right through the Juggernaut like that. </em>She should've warned him about that. <em>I've done everything I could to prepare for this…all I need to do is make sure those tracers don't lock on to him.</em> Another cautionary glance down at Yamaki, who appeared to be completely absorbed in his work. Good. This made things a little easier.</p><p>This was, after all, for the greater good of all Digimon. </p><p>Infiltrate. It was her specialty, after all.</p><p>No matter what commands Kincaid typed into the machine, it stubbornly refused to disable the tracers.<em> I don't have time for this. I won't have another opportunity like this</em>. The young woman gave the panel a moment of consideration. She <em>could</em> set up the machine in such a way that if it made an illegal shutdown, her tracers wouldn't function in the digital plane. In fact, they probably wouldn't work online at all until some other technician fixed her machine.</p><p>She looked around to make sure no one was looking and then pulled off one of her gloves. Because of her power, she hadn't been able to completely get rid of the digital energy that seemed to stick to her the moment she arrived in Japan. Usually, it was a nuisance (especially since the electrical charge seemed to collect mostly around her hands: the reason she had to wear gloves all the time, otherwise people would stare), but for today, it would prove to be helpful. </p><p>
  <em>One illegal shutdown coming up.</em>
</p><p>Kincaid pressed the tip of her finger against the softly glowing screen of the terminal, the air itself wavering around her exposed hand. For a moment, the images and icons on the screen swirled. With an almost inaudible warbling buzz, the terminal blinked off as the machine shut down. Kincaid fitted the glove back onto her hand. Well, that was easy enough! Now all she had to do was turn it back on and viola! Everything would be running except those irritating tracers.</p><p>She paused. <em>Viola? …Well, well, looks like human language is starting to rub off on me. Bad girl. You're not supposed to adapt to them. <br/></em></p><p>Kincaid gave an impish grin at her terminal as she turned it on again. That took care of the last of her problems. She had been lucky to be assigned to the Juggernaut construction. It was lucky as well Yamaki never wandered down when she had been overseeing it – it also meant he didn't see the "little" changes she had made to it. He would only see the shell he blueprinted. None of the modifications she made to prepare for her servant and his charge's arrival. She had also take the opportunity to fiddle around with the Yuggoth system when she had "found" the bug; the program was blind to her presence now.</p><p>He was coming. She could feel him drawing closer. Kincaid was finding it difficult not to smile with suppressed glee: she had prepared five months in advance for this. Months, no, years of hard work - it was all coming to a head. </p><p>Humanity had no idea what was coming.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya trudged through the empty park. Built on a hill, it rose a bit above the city so you could get a good view of the sprawling city. Pretty and all, but Jenrya was starting to hate the climb. It didn't help he had Terriermon riding on top of his head and he had to stop every other minute so Guilmon could sniff curiously at a random rock or flower. <em>At least no one on the subway asked any questions. They probably thought Terriermon and Guilmon were stuffed animals I was bringing home or something.</em> Of course that wasn't true, but he hadn't made any attempt to explain himself.</p><p>"Guilmon, what're you doing?" Terriermon asked for the third time in the past ten minutes.</p><p>Guilmon raised his wedge-shaped head from a small clump of bushes. "Looking to see if Takato's hiding in here!"</p><p>"First of all, Takato couldn't possibly fit in there," Jenrya said. He explained the find-the-Takato "game", but he could tell Guilmon wasn't taking it seriously, "Secondly, Takato's probably hiding really good, so you're not going to find him in such an obvious spot."</p><p>"I see!" Guilmon scampered a few yards ahead, reptilian head swiveling as he tried to pick out more possible hiding places. Jenrya followed gamely after him, glancing down at his watch. 5:50. That didn't leave that much time before he'd have to take the subway back home. Jenrya craned his head to look up at the sky, which was quickly darkening from late afternoon into the early evening. As the three climbed higher, he could see the rest of the city start to light up. Jenrya suddenly wished he brought a flashlight as he noticed there were no overhead lamps.</p><p>"Hey, penny for your thoughts," Terriermon commented quietly.</p><p>"It's nothing." Jenrya replied. He knew his partner didn't believe a word of it so he continued. "I keep thinking I'm handling all this – everything – the wrong way. I'm making a bigger mess of things."</p><p>"You're doing the best you can. You worry too much. I think you've been really calm and stuff."</p><p>"You think that's good?"</p><p>"Well, yeah, 'course I do. Everyone can always count on you: you're the most level-headed out of all of us," Terriermon said, and Jenrya knew he was grinning although he couldn't see him. " 'Cept for me, of course."</p><p>"You're a modest one, aren't you?" Jenrya said with a laugh.</p><p>"Have to be to keep you in line, y'know. But being serious now, you expect too much from yourself sometimes. You always try to do everything without any help from anyone, even when you really do need someone to back you up. That's just shooting yourself in the leg."</p><p>"It's called shooting yourself in the <em>foot</em>, Terriermon."</p><p>"Same thing. You know what I'm talking about."</p><p>Jenrya fell quiet for a moment. He hadn't ever thought about himself that way. He always felt he had to be independent of others<em>. You have to be self-sufficient, otherwise you constantly depend on others</em>...<em>And if you depend on others, you won't be able to do anything on your own. And if you can't do anything by yourself, you can't help those you want to care for.</em> He knew the argument could go in circles. </p><p>"You should be more trusting about people, y'know? Not all of them are incapable of getting things done."</p><p>Jenrya didn't know what to say.<em><br/></em></p><p>"Try to remember that, okay?"</p><p>"I'll think about it, Terriermon," Jenrya sighed. Guilmon waited for them at the top of the grassy hill, claws holding onto the railing as he tried to take in the view all at once. The Tamer called up to Guilmon, "Did you find him?"</p><p>"No! Takato's good at this game, isn't he?"</p><p>"Yeah. He's very good at it."</p><p>Guilmon raised his snout, nostrils twitching, as the others joined him. Terriermon scrambled down from his perch on Jenrya's head to balance on his partner's shoulder, making a small sound of awe as he took in the view of the carpet of lights that Tokyo. The Tamer crossed his arms over his chest, glancing around: he was about to tell them that they were going to look elsewhere, when he noticed the drawn, tense expression on Guilmon's face. He felt himself instinctively tense.</p><p>"What's wrong?"</p><p>Guilmon rumbled, his lips pulling back in a snarl, "Something bad." He leaned over the railing, claws gripping the metal tightly. He made a low growl. "It's coming!"</p><p>"Terriermon, can you feel it too?"</p><p>A tense reply, "Yeah. It's gotta be a Digimon."</p><p>Jenrya faced the direction Guilmon and Terriermon stared, across the blinking city of lights. He didn't see anything. No digital field of fog, nothing. But Jenrya trusted his partner's instincts, as well as Guilmon's. If they were acting like this, then the Digimon probably wasn't friendly, either. Talk about bad timing. <em>First Takato goes missing and now this!</em></p><p>Hastily he pulled off his backpack and began searching for his D-Arc.</p><p>He had a feeling he was going to need it.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid let her gloved hands rest on the terminal, her silver eyes closed behind the tech visor. Her servant approached the building at a rapid rate, traveling once again through the digital plane. It would only be a matter of time before the people around her would notice him. By then it would be too late. She leaned back against her chair, listening to the clack of Yamaki's metal-cased lighter.</p><p>
  <em>Click.</em>
</p><p>"Sir, it's a Wild One!"</p><p>
  <em> Click.</em>
</p><p>"Make sure it doesn't get through," Yamaki ordered, "Kincaid, send a tracer after it."</p><p>
  <em>Oops, but sir, my tracers don't seem to be working.</em>
</p><p>"My tracer's aren't locking on."</p><p>
  <em>Click.</em>
</p><p>"Kei, get me a visual image. Kincaid, try again!"</p><p>
  <em>Click.</em>
</p><p>"I can't get any visual confirmation," Kei shouted down. Her fingers danced across her panel, "It's…sir, the Yuggoth has matched the signature of this Wild One with yesterday's!"</p><p>"Delete it!" Yamaki ordered, his lighter forgotten.</p><p>
  <em> Sorry, Yamaki, but I can't have you doing that.</em>
</p><p>"It's starting to bio-emerge again!"</p><p>"That's impossible!"</p><p>Kincaid knew where her servant would be arriving – she had informed him as soon as he had left the Tokyo Tower, explaining where he was to take his prisoner and that he was to make a diversion so she would be able to slip away unnoticed. He gave little argument, though he made the usual derogatory remarks about the human race. She had only given a chuckle and agreed.</p><p>Kaminmon had a way with words, especially on his favorite subject. Her lips curled up in a smirk.</p><p>
  <em> He's here now. Underneath us and this infernal Yuggoth system of Yamaki's…with the Juggernaut.</em>
</p><p>The blue-eyed Digimon cantered out of the fog flowing around the room, his cloven hooves touching the floor with a series of clatters. Kaminmon ignored the dead weight of the human boy – Takato, wasn't it? – slung across his spiny back, trotting away from his Divine Mist portal toward the huge shadow at the opposite of the room.</p><p>His mistress wanted a diversion. What better way than to send this whole blasted city into darkness?</p><p>The wings on his head flared open, starting to glow a bright white as he gathered his energy for his attack.</p><p>"<em>Virus Override!</em>"</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"It's bio-emerged – " Kei cut off as the room was suddenly bathed in darkness. Kincaid pulled off her goggles, glancing about. A blackout?It worked as a diversion, heavy handed as it was. She pushed up the panel of her terminal, looking down. She knew she could easily crawl down the structure supporting the high-rise chairs (she had been complimented for her monkey-like dexterity - the humans were so much closer to the mark than they knew), but Yamaki would probably ask where she was going. She needed to have an excuse to leave the deck.</p><p>"Dammit!" Yamaki's voice rang out from the darkness. Her silver eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness, but even her keen vision was having trouble piercing the darkness and she could barely see Yamaki.</p><p>"Kei, try to get the backup power online!"</p><p>"It's not responding, sir!"</p><p>Another curse. The white noise the Yuggoth made – beeps and buzzes and clicks – was absent, leaving the room eerily quiet. Yamaki's voice now rebounded off the walls of the deck, unnaturally loud. He unconsciously lowered his voice. "Something's wrong with the connection. We need to try the breakers."</p><p><em> Perfect excuse.</em> "Sir, I can do that!" Kincaid volunteered.</p><p>She could feel Yamaki turning toward her, his gaze cast in her general direction: he seemed to have no trouble in this darkness, appearing to be perfectly at home. "You know where they are?"</p><p>"Yeah," she lied.</p><p>"Bring a flashlight with you. And hurry up!"</p><p>"Will do!" Kincaid replied. Not that a flashlight would work after a Virus Override attack. But she'd bring one anyway so she wouldn't get any questions. <em>Hopefully all those people barricading the Juggernaut deck left. I'm going to have to thank Nagamora for his help with that. </em>Kincaid began the descent to the floor of the deck, clambering down the structure easily.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya stared, frozen in his tracks. He couldn't believe what he had just seen happen. After all, it wasn't every day you saw the city suddenly go pitch black.</p><p>Guilmon relaxed his shoulders. He'd had been on the verge of vaulting over the railing and racing at breakneck speed down the hill toward the threat, but now he couldn't sense anything. He shook his head. "What happened to the lights?"</p><p>"A blackout," Terriermon said. He jumped down to the grassy ground, only a shadowy form in the dim light the moon was cast. "Maybe that thing we felt caused it. I mean, it's kinda weird when there's suddenly a big blackout right after we felt a Digimon coming."</p><p>Jenrya shook off his own surprise. "Maybe, but we're not sure if it was caused by a Digimon. I didn't see a digital field, did you?"</p><p>"Nope." Terriermon continued, "But I think we should take a look around, still. Never know if anything icky's sneaking around."</p><p>Guilmon shivered, his voice wavering. "Sneaking about? Like a m-monster from a movie?"</p><p>The shadowy form of Terriermon turned, and grinned. "Oh, that might be! A monster with fangs, claws and a cape, ready to suck out your juices! Maybe even your blood! Suck it out like a vacuum cleaner sucks up dust bunnies!"</p><p>"Terriermon, there's no such thing as vampires. You've been seeing too many horror movies yourself. Stop trying to scare Guilmon. And you're starting to gross <em>me</em> out."</p><p>"Aw, but Jenrya…"</p><p>"We have to be serious now. Tease Guilmon later," Jenrya said. He looked down at the D-Arc nestled in his hand. "Takato let me borrow his Hyper Wings card yesterday: do you mind flying up and checking things out for us?"</p><p>Terriermon shook his head, giving his consent. Jenrya pulled out the card from his pocket, and shifted the D-Arc in his hand so he could slide the Hyper Wings through the slot. He turned the Hyper Wings card in his palm and held the D-Arc raised above his head.</p><p>"<em>Digi-Modify! </em>Hyper Wings…<em>activate!</em>"</p><p>Nothing. He tried again, thinking maybe he slashed the card wrong.</p><p>"<em>Digi-Modify!</em> Hyper Wings…<em>activate!</em>"</p><p>Nothing. Again. <em>Now what's wrong?</em> Jenrya lowered his hands, as Terriermon shot him a bewildered look. He held up the card, inspecting it in the moonlight. There didn't appear to be anything wrong with the card – no scratches, no bent edges or no rips – in fact, it appeared to be in perfect condition. So it wasn't the card. Besides, even if there was something wrong with the card, his D-Arc shouldn't have a problem with it. <em>After all, look how Takato made Guilmon. He said he used </em>notebook<em> paper</em> So if it wasn't the card, then it must be the D-Arc itself…</p><p>"I don't think it worked," Guilmon said. "Maybe the card doesn't like your D-Arc."</p><p>"What happened, Jenrya?" Terriermon asked.</p><p>"I don't know," Jenrya returned the card to his pocket, turning the D-Arc over in his hands. The white and green casing looked fine. He hadn't dropped it recently (the device seemed to be pretty hardy anyway: you could probably run it over with a car and it would still be running), so that wasn't it. The LCD screen was blank, no longer glowing that soft green that let him know it was on. Jenrya turned the D-Arc over. The Tamer experimentally touched some of the other buttons near the display. It was as if the D-Arc had gone completely dead.</p><p>"Here, let me take a look." Terriermon stretched his paws out. He sat down on the grass as he examined the D-Arc. "Whoa, weird. I can't see what you did wrong. And I've seen Takato use the Hyper Wing card a buncha times, so it can't be the card."</p><p>"Can I see it?" Guilmon asked.</p><p>Terriermon glanced at his partner, who nodded. The rabbit-Digimon handed the D-Arc to Guilmon, as Jenrya tried to figure out what he was going to do. There'd be no way he'd find Takato – in the dark, he'd have trouble picking out his friend from, say, a shopping cart. Guilmon could still sniff his scent out, but so far they hadn't any luck. Jenrya sighed He knew his parents would be worried about him, and with the electricity out, the subway was definitely out of the question. He could call his parents to let them know where he was as soon as the power returned.</p><p>
  <em>But that means I'll have to give up searching for Takato. How can I find him in the dark like this, though? </em>
</p><p>Jenrya blinked as he realized he was staring at the dark shape of his D-Arc. He took it back from Guilmon. Guilmon made a helpless gesture.</p><p>"I don't know what's wrong with it either."</p><p>Jenrya made a face in the dim lighting. "That makes the three of us." He went on to explain their situation, that they'd probably be stranded at this end of town until the power returned. He didn't like the idea of trying to catch a ride with the bus. Without the traffic lights, it would be insane trying to drive down the streets. They'd probably end up in a car crash or something.</p><p>"I guess this means the find-the-Takato game is over?" Guilmon asked.</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>Guilmon padded around Jenrya, starting to head down the hill, "Guess we'd better go…I don't like hanging around here when it's all dark and stuff."</p><p>Jenrya followed Guilmon, picking up Terriermon on the way. He started to look at his watch, wincing as he imagined how late he was going to be.</p><p>The face of it was blank.</p><p><em>What the…?</em> He checked again, sure he'd be imagining things.</p><p>No digital display. It, like the D-Arc, was completely dead.</p><p>Weird<em>. Dad bought this watch for me only a few weeks ago.</em></p><p>"Jenrya, Terriermon, come on!" Guilmon called over his shoulder.</p><p>Jenrya quickened his step, for the moment forgetting the watch and his D-Arc.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Click. Click. Click Click. Click.</em>
</p><p>Kincaid made her way down the emergency stairs, the heavy flashlight swinging at her side. The young woman spun it like a baton, clicking it on and off as she walked. The flashlight remained dark, though the bulb was as new as the batteries.</p><p>
  <em>Click click. Click.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I must be close to the Juggernaut decks by now. <br/></em>
</p><p>She could feel her servant, his carefully toned down aura drawing even closer with each step. <em>It's been such a long time since I've seen Thanasimon. I wonder if he's still a Rookie? </em>Kincaid shook her head, her short purple hair swinging with the movement. <em>No, he's much stronger than that. </em>He must have digivolved by now. This thought sent a thrill up her spine. What did he look like now? <em>He's probably a Champion, but such power for that level! His Virus Override must have knocked out all the electronics within the city limits. </em>Kincaid felt along the banister of the stairs. Even her inhuman vision was unable to pierce through the complete darkness of the stairwell. <em>I'm sure he'd like to hear that. He probably won't want to be called Thanasimon anymore!</em></p><p>
  <em>And you, silly girl, are starting to sound like one of those "mothers" cooing over her little brat.</em>
</p><p>Kincaid stopped in her tracks as she ran out of stairs. She tried the door. It wasn't locked, which surprised her. She thought Nagamora had completely sealed the deck off. Kincaid let herself in, glancing around cautiously. She couldn't make that much about, but she didn't see anyone in the short hall leading to the Juggernaut's room. <em>Good. </em>She shut the emergency exit behind her, heading down the corridor toward the heavy steel door.</p><p>She ran her hands along the edges of the door. Welded shut along the top and the bottom, though this left one area untouched. She tried to measure it with her fingers, though it was difficult in the darkness. <em>I could fit through there, with shifting on my part. </em>There was no possible way she could squeeze in through that crack in the human shape she was in now.<em><br/></em></p><p>Kincaid concentrated on shifting, feeling her present form slide away like water. She pressed herself against the open slit and with a slurping sensation slid through. She quickly returned to her shape, satisfied. Thoughtful of Nagamora to leave her an opening like that. The Founder had always been thoughtful like that. She almost expected she'd have to break the door down. Not that she couldn't, but she was sure people would be more than a little suspicious to see the big metal door suddenly lying on the floor or blasted to pieces.</p><p>"Thanasimon?" She called. Her voice bounced around the deck, echoing back at her distorted.</p><p>"Over here, my lady."</p><p>Kincaid made her way toward the voice. Her servant's voice was quite a bit deeper than she last remembered and she could barely recognize that familiar rise in it. The young woman removed one of her gloves. The wavering air around her fingers started to glow a pale red, reacting in response to the Digimon's presence. She could make out her servant's form in its light.</p><p>"You digivolved?" Kincaid asked, looking the winged virus-type up and down.</p><p>"Yes. I uploaded enough data to change from Thanasimon to my Champion form, Kaminmon. I am one of a kind and at your service."</p><p>Kincaid beckoned the Digimon over, deciding she liked his new appearance, "You're not so sickly looking as before. You're starting to look more like a real Digimon should."</p><p>When Kincaid first came into contact with her servant, he had been in an In-Training , barely distinguishable from a lifeless Golem. Golems were data that started out originally as newly created Digimon, but were unable to survive the strain of life. They were little more than automatons that followed any orders from the high-level Digimon and looked down upon by the true Digimon. They were, to use the terminology she learned here, pretty much undead. She took pity on the In-Training, once upon a time, and helped him until he had, with her aid, digivolved to his more stable Rookie form. Maybe he'd originally been a virus from the web, one that happened to come into contact with Digimon data, and mutated. Thanasi - no, it was Kaminmon now, wasn't it? – looked to be promising.</p><p>Kaminmon only smiled, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, baring his rotting gums further, blind devotion in his eyes. "I thank you for your praise, my lady."</p><p>Kincaid waved his thanks aside, noticing the limp form laid across Kaminmon's bony back. "Is that the one?"</p><p>"Yes. The human boy with the virus-Digimon Guilmon. Proof that humans didn't learn their lesson since the Purges."</p><p>"Why's he unconscious?"</p><p>The four-legged Digimon made a valiant effort to shrug. "I can't really say, my lady. Perhaps humans are too weak."</p><p>Kincaid made a sound of disapproval. "Most likely. They're all so frail, it's a wonder the next breeze doesn't blow them away," she gestured for her servant to follow her, heading toward the hulking mass of the Juggernaut. "As long as he's alive, it doesn't really matter. Did you get his Digivice?"</p><p>Kaminmon, trotting at her side, ducked his equine head in sincere apology. "I wasn't able to retrieve it. The boy dropped it just before the first journey through my portals."</p><p>"You're going to go back and get it." It was an order, not a question.</p><p>"Yes, my lady."</p><p>"Good. But don't forget he's still your charge: until he's ready to help us, I'll have to make sure none of those upstairs knows of what's going on. Be quick about finding it." Kincaid stopped before the Juggernaut, holding her glowing hand so that she could see the plating of the huge machine. She began to feel around the uneven metal surface with her free hand, "Remember how important our work is here. We're doing this for all Digimon. Not just ourselves."</p><p>"So no more have to become Golems…" Kaminmon murmured. He was apparently remembering his own brush with that miserable existence. "And because we're running out of time because of the virus."</p><p>"Exactly." Kincaid got down on her hands on knees, searching around the base of the Juggernaut.</p><p>"Stay back," she warned, her hand hovering over the hidden switch. Kaminmon dutifully stepped backward with a clattering of hooves against the concrete floor as Kincaid pressed her palm to the jagged chunk of metal. With a hiss, the plating of the Juggernaut swung open. Steam roiled away from the machine, curling around her legs.</p><p>Kaminmon looked more than a little startled. "What is this?"</p><p>"It's Yamaki's Juggernaut," Kincaid patted the opened plates. "But I made some changes to it. We're going to use this to channel the energy we're going to need for our work. This will be our backup."</p><p>She stepped away as Kaminmon looked inside curiously. Instead of the chips and wires from Yamaki's plan, there were heaving coils of various sizes which constantly shifted, giving the impression they moved on their own. Silly of her imagination (she knew the Juggernaut wasn't alive, and though she installed a personality matrix into it, along with her other "adjustments", she hadn't done anything with the matrix – it was still a blank slate). It wasn't alive. At least, not in the sense she was - and even if she decided to have something imprint the matrix with a personality, the Juggernaut would only be a false life, feeding off the host.</p><p><em>But the Juggernaut can absorb enough energy for my purposes. If we have the matrix running, it would probably be easier to direct the Juggernaut.</em> At the moment, the machine was blindly grasping for a power source. <em>Interesting. It doesn't know what it is but it's still attempting to complete itself</em>.</p><p>"Here, see this?" Kincaid reached in, and brushed aside the thick coils with her arms, revealing a large sloping metal capsule. It was cut into several sections in a reclining position, almost resembling a throne. "This is part of the personality matrix I installed into the Juggernaut. It's not operating at full power because it's not finished."</p><p>"What about the humans? Won't they attempt to complete this thing?"</p><p>'They won't be able to come down here. One of our operatives has seen to that. We can't have the Juggernaut being finished," Kincaid answered. "Otherwise they're bound to notice this isn't what was in the original blueprints."</p><p>Kincaid removed her arm, shaking away the little wires that attached themselves to her arm. The coils had been trying to absorb the digital energy around her hand. They fell back in disappointment, shifting with a creaking sound amongst themselves. "I decided I'm going to implement the matrix into our work. Do you know we're going to be using Golems as well?"</p><p>A grunt. Kaminmon, (strangely enough), had an intense hatred for them, even though he had been close to becoming one himself. "I do now."</p><p>"No objections?"</p><p>"None, my lady."</p><p>"And what about the boy?" Kincaid asked. "I know how you feel toward humans, but I need you to be moderately cooperative with this one."</p><p>"Whatever your wish is, I shall carry it out," said Kaminmon. "How I feel has little significance."</p><p>"Good," Kincaid thrust her hand back in the moving coils, pushing them aside, "See it stays that way. Now help me put him inside the matrix. I had it built for a human body, so he should fit."</p><p>Kaminmon warily approached the capsule's exposed interior, rearing up on his hind legs and planting his hooves next to her hands. She removed her arms and picked up the unconscious boy with ease, barely giving him a glance. She turned around as Kaminmon made a sound of protest. The wires had sunk themselves into the hocks of his hooves and were steadily dodging his attempts to bite them off.</p><p>"Hold still!"</p><p>Kaminmon tried to steel himself, looking away as more wires dug into his fur. Holding the limp form braced against her shoulder with one hand, Kincaid reached through the mass and pushed open the top of the sheet of white metal. She leaned further in, trading the boy from one arm to the other, and placed him in the embrace of the matrix.</p><p>"I'm almost done," Kincaid said. Her servant nodded, as Kincaid returned to her work. She remembered she built it so there were various pieces to the matrix: plates for the chest, the arms, the hands, the legs, and the head. She had all of it except for the head plate. It had to be somewhere nearby. Kincaid leaned further into the machine, her hand searching about blindly in the moving coils. Her fingers closed about the smooth edge of something, briefly touched the round smooth surface. She pulled the object out, and fitted it on the boy. The head visor covered the top of his head, though it left the lower half of his face open to the air. She flipped the chest plate back, so that is was snuggly against him and began to snap the arm and hand plates over him.</p><p>Kincaid removed her arms, stepping back and motioning for Kaminmon to do the same. The Champion gratefully pulled his cloven hooves from the shifting masses, wincing as small wires were ripped from his fur. He watched with mild fascination as the coils settled around the capsule, the wires now latching onto the boy. Kaminmon rubbed at one hoof with the other and stared as a wire snaked out from the helmet-like headgear and sunk into an exposed cheek.</p><p>And that was that. Kincaid shut the enormous doors of the Juggernaut. Kaminmon took a few steps backward, the fur on his snout blowing backward from the gust of air the machine sent off.</p><p>"It's going to be a few days before the Juggernaut's personality matrix will completely accept him," Kincaid told him. She started to stride past. "I want you to find his Digivice and bring it to me. Aafter you find his Digivice, you're to contact the next target."</p><p>Kaminmon cantered to keep up with her. "It's a Digimon, isn't it?"</p><p>"Yes. A Rookie." Kincaid started to pull on her glove again, and thought better of it. "And a potential ally. I want you to get him to understand our cause. Treat him cordially."</p><p>"What if he doesn't want to cooperate with us?"</p><p>Kincaid shrugged: they were at the sealed door again. "Then he'll be the first meal the Juggernaut's going to absorb. One Digimon's deletion isn't going to matter if we're going to save all of them."</p><p>"The whole is always more important then the individual," Kaminmon intoned, and ducked his head as Kincaid rewarded him with a smile of approval. "I remembered what you told me when I was Thanasimon."</p><p>Kincaid pulled on her gloves, bathing the room once again in darkness.</p><p>"You're a good servant. And a friend." Kincaid said. "You've chosen to do the right thing by volunteering for this. In a few days, we'll see our work pay off."</p><p>She ran a hand playfully through his fur for a moment.</p><p>"Don't get yourself deleted by those humans. Not when we're so close."</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Going through the chapter to put in the chapter breaks as well as some editing.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Abandoned Goggles</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Takato meets the Juggernaut, who initializes a background check on its new "companion system" and prepares the Tamer to meet its exacting standards for merging.</p><p>Kincaid begins her work sabotaging Hypnos. With Takato's D-Arc in her hands, Ruki faces an ambush.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/><strong>Author's Note</strong>: Digimon Tamers, centered around Takato and Jenrya (and one more character). Switches to the other characters from time to time. Takes just before Yamaki sets forth his Juggernaut plan (like, a day or two before the Juggernaut is activated. Don't really know the exact episode, guess between Episodes 12 and 14) <strong>departs from canon from there and goes off in a different direction. </strong></p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Chapter 4 – Abandoned Goggles)</strong>
</p><p>"You aren't hungry?"</p><p>Ruki scowled at the bowl of cereal sitting in front of her. She had only taken a few bites.</p><p>"No."</p><p>The older woman sighed and began collecting the dishes. "But I thought you liked oatmeal."</p><p>The Tamer got to her feet. "Well, you thought wrong. I hate the stuff." She left the room without waiting for her grandmother's reply, practically slamming the shoji screen behind her. <em>Who cares about oatmeal? You'd think she's got oatmeal on the brain or something.</em> Ruki stormed down the outside corridor. She knew she was taking it out on her grandmother: the poor woman hadn't done anything wrong except try to be friendly to her.</p><p>Ruki stopped at the screen to her room, one hand resting on the frame. She didn't turn to see who was behind her: she already knew.</p><p>"Ruki?"</p><p>"Yes?"</p><p>Renamon's voice was low. "You're worried, aren't you? And afraid…about what we found last night."</p><p>Ruki let out a strained laugh. "Me? Worried? Afraid? Think you've got the wrong girl, Renamon"</p><p>Silence.</p><p>"Ruki, you can talk to me. I'm not going to make judgments. I'm your partner, remember?"</p><p>The Tamer hesitated. It would be nice to talk to Renamon. They were equals after all, weren't they? But what if Renamon only laughed at her? Or... No, some things were best kept private. Ruki slid the shoji screen open so she could slip through. Behind her, Renamon sighed, but made no attempt to come in after her. She knew her partner wanted privacy.<em><br/></em></p><p>Ruki began to move about the darkened room, at first avoiding the table in the center as she packed school materials into her backpack. She paused as a clap of thunder sounded from somewhere in the distance, threatening rain. Her mother had run off earlier for another photo shoot, which would probably get rained on pretty soon and ruin that expensive dress of hers.</p><p>Ruki knew she was trying to pretend nothing was wrong. That she hadn't found the objects now lying on her desk. <em>What am I so afraid of? </em>Ruki turned and quickly approached the desk. Vaguely, she wished they'd disappear. She stared at them for a long moment, half-expecting them to vanish. They refused to blip out of existence despite her mental prodding.</p><p>
  <em> This is so stupid. Everyone's probably laughing at me for acting like such a baby!</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I'll show them.</em>
</p><p>She swept the goggles and Takato's red-trimmed D-Arc into her backpack and zipped it shut.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya struggled into his vest, groping around for the zipper. The power returned around ten last night and he got home an hour and a half later after fighting through the jammed subway. He spent the rest of the night trying to do his homework, probably a lost cause because he was having a hard time concentrating, and it felt like he'd only gotten four hours of sleep.<em><br/></em></p><p>He felt like a zombie. A zombie who wanted to roll back into bed.<em><br/></em></p><p>Terriermon wasn't in his room. Apparently Shuichon wandered in while Jenrya was still asleep and stole his partner away. Probably for a round of tea party and dress up. That, or a checkup with "Nurse Shuichon". <em>Guess I better rescue him again. Starting to feel sorry for the poor guy</em>. Jenrya shouldered his backpack as he checked his watch. Last night Ruki and he agreed to meet at the park close to school and he'd at least twenty minutes before classes started. Ruki had called the house several times before he got back, several new messaged blinking urgently on the answering machine. She sounded upset about something, though she did a good job at hiding the emotions. Her message was cryptic. When he called her back, she was close-mouthed.</p><p>S<em>he must've found something. </em>Jenrya forced his hopes not to rise too far He hated having them crushed. <em>She probably didn't find Takato or she would've said so.</em></p><p>Jenrya opened the door. Shuichon was camped out in the living room, her short legs dangling off the couch. His sister was speaking to herself, her growing collection (army? horde?) of dolls and stuffed animals set up on the sofa around her. Terriermon shot him a pleading glance from where he sat on a cushion, a tiny straw hat strapped to his head complete with a giant plastic flower.</p><p>His dad must have ears like a fox, because he was already poking his head out of the kitchen.</p><p>"Jenrya, good morning!"</p><p>" 'Morning, Dad," Jenrya said, staring at Terriermon. He was going to have to figure a way to get the Rookie away from Shuichon without getting his sister upset. The poor Digimon looked ready to burst into embarrassed tears.</p><p>His dad nodded toward the kitchen. "We're having gai-lan and scrambled eggs."</p><p>Jenrya shook his head. Knowing his father's attempts at making food…okay, it was safe to say he couldn't cook to save his life. "I gotta meet someone before school, Dad. They're waiting for me."</p><p>"You don't know what you're missing, Jenrya."</p><p>"Sorry, Dad, but I can't keep them waiting." Jenrya eyed Shuichon, who was removing the straw hat from Terriermon, holding a toy stethoscope in the other hand. "You know how it is."</p><p>"Okay, okay. There's some pastries left over from dim sum with your grandparents," his father said. "Take those."</p><p>"Sure." Jenrya passed Terriermon, and, taking out the pastries from the pantry, stuffed them into his backpack. "Oh, and Dad?"</p><p>His dad concentrated on stirring the oyster sauce, bubbling away in the pan. "Hmm?"</p><p>"Could you take a look at my watch sometime tomorrow? It was acting really weird last night."</p><p>"Sure. After I get back from work, I'll see what I can do, okay?"</p><p>"Thanks, Dad," Jenrya glanced over his shoulder. Shuichon had turned away again to attend to a small plush bear. The Tamer swept over, plucking Terriermon away from the couch and hurrying past his father, "Bye, Dad!"</p><p>He shut the door behind him, letting out a sigh of relief. Terriermon was now fixing him with a betrayed look. "Took you long enough!" Terriermon clambered up his arms until he was perched on the top of his backpack. "Thought you were gonna leave me behind!"</p><p>Jenrya headed down the empty hall. "I wasn't."</p><p>"Momentai, I guess." Terriermon poked him in the back of his neck with a stubby claw, "So, where're we goin' now?"</p><p>"We're meeting Ruki."</p><p>"About that message? Why didn't she just tell you straight out?"</p><p>"Look, I don't <em>know</em>, okay?"</p><p>"Y'don't have to be so touchy."</p><p>"Sorry."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Good morning, Mr. Yamaki."</p><p>Yamaki nodded to the secretary, stopping before her desk. "Have there been any messages for me?"</p><p>"No, sir."</p><p>Yamaki turned on his heel, crossing the lobby. He was early, but he wanted to personally supervise the tech teams he called in last night. The prolonged blackout shot several of the network servers. Not only that, but some of the data stored in the memory banks had been lost and he wasn't too keen on losing them for good. <em>God, I </em>hate<em> babysitting. </em>Last time he left the tech team alone, they tried to upgrade every computer in the network, ignoring the fact <em>no</em>, he <em>hadn't</em> okayed it.</p><p>He could feel the beginnings of a migraine coming on. Just thinking about it was giving him a headache.</p><p>It wasn't like he was planning on resigning or anything. Yamaki once considered it, but quickly decided against it. The pay was pretty good, and besides…he had his own personal reasons for wanting all the wild Digimon gone from the Real World. Putting up with incompetent staff was really a small price to pay. </p><p>Yamaki headed for the elevator. As he moved, he reached into his coat's lapels and pulled out his sunglasses. Someone – he was pretty sure it was Kei – once asked him why he wore the sunglasses indoors. Yamaki hadn't given an answer, instead giving her a flat stare until she swallowed and looked away, muttering about getting back to work.</p><p>Sure, it looked strange, but it was his business, not his employees'. Yamaki crossed his arms as he waited for the elevator. His eyes were still sensitive to lights after the Incident, but they were healing. They'd certainly improved from that time four years ago, when he'd first been injured. When he'd...no. He was done beating himself up for it. What happened had happened and this was his penace.</p><p>The elevator door dinged as it arrived at the lobby, Yamaki stepping inside. </p><p>"Wait!" someone called. "Wait!"</p><p>Yamaki leaned out and held one arm against the elevator door nearest him. A blur of bright purple went past him, trailing a mild scent of lilac.</p><p>"Thanks!"</p><p>He turned around, as the doors shut behind him. It was Kincaid. The tech who teased him about smoking. Nagamora's personal recommendation for his team.</p><p>"Aren't you a little early?" Yamaki asked, raising an eyebrow behind his sunglasses.</p><p>Kincaid shrugged, a smile flickering on her lips. "I'm an early bird. Gotta get a jump on that sweet overtime."</p><p>"You're not working as replacement today, are you?"</p><p>"No, sir." Kincaid replied. "But would it be alright if I stayed up in the Yuggoth deck? I could learn faster if I watched Kei and Reika at work."</p><p>Yamaki considered it. To be frank, he didn't like allowing any unnecessary personnel up there. Yamaki had been quite literally tripping on everyone the last time he allowed it, until he had made the area restricted to only the necessary personnel and those he personally cleared. Even if Nagamora had vouched for this one.</p><p>"I'll think about it."</p><p>"Thanks."</p><p>The two were quiet for a moment as the elevator traveled upward.</p><p>She spoke up again, silver eyes staring intently at him. "Um…could I ask you something?"</p><p>"Knock yourself out."</p><p>Kincaid didn't seem to hear the indifference in his voice, shoving her hands in the pockets of her uniform's slacks. She looked up at the ceiling for a moment, then back at him.</p><p>"When you delete a Digimon, what happens to its data?"</p><p>Yamaki blinked, his eyebrow quirking at this unexpected question. The procedure of deletion he expected everyone to know, but thinking about it now, he never bothered to explain what happened after. He had been only concerned with getting results, not having his personnel informed on the rest because it shouldn't impact their work. It wasn't a classified secret or anything and he couldn't think of any intelligent reason why he shouldn't tell her.</p><p>"I'm curious." Kincaid added, "I could never figure out what happened after a deletion had been confirmed."</p><p>Yamaki reached up to straighten his sunglasses. "It depends on the circumstances, if the Digimon has bio-emerged or not. It's more difficult to deal with bio-emerged Digimon because we can't use the Yuggoth to deal with it. It's not in the digital plane. I created the system to deal with what's developing online, not the Real World," Yamaki paused, and Kincaid nodded. She was following him, so he continued. "If we're able to delete a Wild One before bio-emerging, then we simply collect the leftover data."</p><p>"Why collect it? It's still a Digimon – in a way – isn't it?"</p><p>"It's really only basic data, without any of the faulty programming," Yamaki replied. He once again had to curse those programmers for even creating their "game" in the first place. "We're only left with the useful data, nothing of the 'memories', the 'personality', or even the base AI."</p><p>"Just pure data."</p><p>"Just pure data," he agreed.</p><p>She thought about this for a few seconds. "So, why do you even bother to collect it? Why don't you just delete it for good?"</p><p>Yamaki shrugged. "We've been using the data for the research, to learn more about these creatures. Besides, the data's recyclable. It would be a waste to throw it out if we can still use it."</p><p>"Ah…" Kincaid said. "And you keep this data in the network?"</p><p>Yamaki nodded. She most likely came across some of the files or programs in her past work and had probably been wondering about their nature. In fact, regarding the deletion data, some of it from the last deletion had been going through the transfer procedure yesterday, which was what he was trying to save from being lost.</p><p>There was a ding as the elevator slowly slid open. Kincaid strode forward, and turned around, giving a small wave, satisfied with his answers. "Guess I get off here! Thanks!"</p><p>Yamaki didn't return the gesture, the doors closing. He was busy going over the conversation just now. On the surface it was harmless. But given all the backstabbing and politics from before with the Four, and knowing Kincaid was one of Nagamora's "recommendations", Yamaki had to wonder.</p><p>He suddenly felt uneasy, though about what, he couldn't place a finger on.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya leaned against the tree as he tried to avoid getting drenched by the downpour. In his hurry to get out of the apartment, he didn't see the thunderheads or notice the faintly rolling thunder and of course he forgot to bring an umbrella. Or even a decent raincoat, for that matter. The Tamer didn't like the idea of freezing his butt off, but that was exactly what he was doing. Too late to turn back and go back home.</p><p>The two arrived at the park a few minutes ago, right around the time the sky broke overhead and began to dump buckets of water on their heads. Terriermon took refugee near the wall, pressing as close he could. Luckily for the two of them the trees provided enough cover that the sheets of rain didn't penetrate enough to soak them, only enough to be a light drizzle. Not too far from where Jenrya stood, rain pounded into the pond, water lapping at the rocky shore. Even the ducks normally floating around were gone, taking shelter from the storm.</p><p><em>Ruki better hurry up. I'm not standing out here because I </em>want<em> to.</em></p><p>He rubbed at his arms, trying to rub some warmth into them.</p><p>"Jenrya!"</p><p>Jenrya glanced over at the sound of the voice. Ruki ran toward him, holding a umbrella over her head as she approached, dressed in her school's uniform. He didn't see Renamon, but he asummed she was probably right behind her partner. Ruki splashed through a puddle, hopping down the last few steps and jogging the rest of the way until she was standing under the tree. Renamon appeared, perched on the lowest branch.</p><p>"Bad way to start the day, Ruki," Jenrya said. "What took you?"</p><p>She shrugged it off. "I'm only a few minutes late. Don't make such a big deal out of nothing."</p><p>"What did you drag me out here for?" Jenrya asked, his mouth a thin line. "I don't suppose you had better luck than I did."</p><p>The expression on Ruki's face was a troubled one. "Actually…"</p><p>Jenrya's heart skipped a beat and he quickly forgot he was cold and annoyed. "You found something?"</p><p>"Yeah." Ruki said, glancing up at Renamon. Her partner nodded almost imperceptibly. "Look, I'll just tell you what happened on our search, so you don't have to bother trying to grill me for info."</p><p>She went on.</p><p>"We took Impmon with us before you left with Guilmon. At first, he was a real pain. He kept making all these snide remarks and he only shut up when I threatened to gag him. We went to Tokyo Tower – we spent a long time looking around the area, but we didn't find anything until…" Ruki trailed off.</p><p>Renamon picked up her train of thought up, continuing for her partner. "I couldn't go into the Tower until the blackout. Impmon was right. We did find something. Ruki?"</p><p>Her Tamer slowly slung her backpack from her shoulder. Unclasping the flap, she opened it, and, reaching in, pulled out two objects, holding them out toward Jenrya for inspection. Jenrya froze as he instantly recognizing them, staring in surprise. Terriermon made a sound of surprise, just as startled as his human partner.</p><p>Dangling from her fingers was a pair of goggles with blue-tinted lenses: ones which could usually be seen on Takato Matsuda's head. In her palm was a familiar D-Arc, the casing decorated with fire-red trimming.</p><p>"Those are Takato's!" Jenrya exclaimed.</p><p>"No <em>duh,</em>" Ruki said. The normal sarcasm had a worried undertone.</p><p>"You said you found these at Tokyo Tower?"</p><p>"Yeah. Also found his cards. But no Takato."</p><p>"So he <em>was</em> at the Tower," Jenrya mused. What was he doing there? Why would Takato leave all of this? Not that Takato vanishing made any sense in the first place, but this confused him further. Something's not right. Jenrya bit his lip. From the looks of it, Takato had been prepared for a Digimon battle. But why didn't he take Guilmon? <em>What's the point of going after a wild Digimon if you don't even bring your own partner? </em>Guilmon would've mentioned going off with Takato for a battle, but he hadn't said anything yesterday. Yet Takato had been obviously expecting a fight…and…Guilmon hadn't gone with him, hadn't even known about it. It didn't add up.</p><p>It suddenly struck him maybe Takato hadn't run away.</p><p>Something happened.</p><p>"Something's wrong with this picture." Jenrya didn't like this. It was one thing if Takato simply ran away, which was bad enough (and still didn't make sense), but if something happened to him, that was a completely different problem. Jenrya refused to consider the fact his friend might be hurt. Takato knew what he was doing, and even if he didn't encourage fights unlike Ruki, he was usually careful and he seemed to have his share of luck.</p><p>"Well?" Ruki spoke up impatiently.</p><p>"Um…" Jenrya tapped his chin, trying to formulate a plan of action. "There's really nothing we can do," his voice rose warningly as he saw Ruki about to interrupt, "We have his D-Arc, his goggles and his cards. That doesn't clear up anything. We still don't know <em>where</em> Takato is or what he's doing. We're back where we started."</p><p>Renamon nodded from her place on the branch, leaning over and looking down at the group underneath the tree. "He has a point. We don't know anything – " she cut off, a paw flying to her mouth as she realized something. Renamon pounded the side of her perch, showering bark and leaves on those below, "Of course! How could I be so foolish?"</p><p>"What?" Jenrya asked.</p><p>Renamon bared her fangs in a grimace, "Impmon! In the confusion last night, we didn't get a chance to find out exactly what he saw and I have a feeling he saw quite a bit. Enough to answer our questions."</p><p>Ruki scowled. "We get careless for a second and things fall apart. So, Jenrya ? What do you want to do?"</p><p>He wasn't pleased he was suddenly hit with with all the decision-making. <em>I'm </em>not<em> leader-material.</em> Yet Ruki apparently decided she didn't want the responsibility and dumped it in his lap. Jenrya shook his head. "I'm gonna keep looking for him. We didn't check the area around his house yet. You didn't find anything else last night?"</p><p>"No. Just what I've got here."</p><p>"Renamon, could you try to find Impmon again?"</p><p>"I won't guarantee anything, but I can certainly try." Renamon stood up, shaking off the drizzle beading her golden coat.</p><p>"Great. Ruki, what about you? You want to help search?"</p><p>Ruki shook her head. "I can't. My mom's dragging me to her photo shoot," she grimaced. Then, as if an afterthought, "Sorry."</p><p>Jenrya didn't immediately reply, instead nodding at goggles and D-Arc in Ruki's hands, "What about those?"</p><p>Ruki slowly glanced down at them, as if she was completely surprised to find them still in her hands. She looked taken aback. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with them."</p><p>"I'd take his D-Arc off your hands, but I'm afraid my little sister might get a hold of it. I could take his goggles, if that would make things any better."</p><p>Ruki handed him the goggles, obviously relieved to get rid of them.</p><p>"Look, I've got to get going, otherwise I'll be late," she said at last. Ruki turned away, "Call me if anything comes up." She motioned for Renamon to follow her. "Let's go."</p><p>She turned on her heel, stepping back out into the pouring rain and ducking under her umbrella. Renamon leapt away from the branch, disappearing in midair as she hastened after her partner, leaving Jenrya standing under the tree's cover. It was a few long moments after Ruki disappeared past the wall and down the street before anyone spoke up.</p><p>"Jeez, I don't know 'bout you, but I'm even more confused," Terriermon said.</p><p>Jenrya shivered, suddenly reminded of the fact he was freezing his butt off, "You said it, Terriermon." He reached down and picked his partner up. One way or another they'd figure this out. Jenrya ducked his head and ran out into the rain as the black clouds roiled in the sky.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>(Six hours later)</p><p>He dreamed.</p><p>The wind thundered through the valley, ruffling the young boy's hair. He kept close to the wild grass, on his hands and knees because the gusts were strong and he was scared he'd be blown right off his feet. He didn't know how he got on the small meadow near the base of the mountain range but it didn't seem strange to him. It was only a simple fact he was <em>here</em>, wherever <em>here</em> was. At least it wasn't any place really weird, like the moon. What with all the weird stuff going on, he almost half-expected he'd end up there. It was a relief to be on good, old planet Earth.</p><p>
  <strong>What are you?</strong>
</p><p><em>I'm a human. </em>He was confused, for a moment wondering why he was asking himself such a weird question.</p><p>
  <strong>What are you?</strong>
</p><p><em>I'm me</em>. He replied.</p><p>
  <strong>What are you?</strong>
</p><p><em> I'm a Tamer. </em>The boy continued on. Inch by inch, he traveled, making slow progress as he crawled on his hands and knees. He didn't know where he was going, only that it seemed like a good idea to move forward. A blast of roaring wind tugged at him. The boy sprawled on the ground, digging his fingers into the dirt as he held on for dear life, dust flying.</p><p>
  <strong>Who are you? What type of program are you?</strong>
</p><p><em> I'm Takato Matsuda. And I'm not a program</em>.</p><p>Takato reached up, pulling the goggles he wore down over his eyes. His vision became blue-tinted as he lowered his head, a particularly strong gust spinning and dancing overhead as it howled. As soon as it passed, he resumed crawling.</p><p>
  <strong> Are you a foreign system?</strong>
</p><p><em> …I…guess. </em>Though Takato had never considered himself as that. <em>Suppose that's one way of looking at it?</em> The sharp whistling died down, and he sat up, finally able to take a good look around him. He had been steadily moving uphill, but because of the pressing wind; he hadn't been able to clearly see where his path was taking him.</p><p>To his surprise, the familiar form of Jenrya Lee was perched on a rock only a few yards away, one leg crossed over the other, apparently waiting for him. He stared right at him.</p><p>
  <strong>Why are you here?</strong>
</p><p>Takato didn't give an answer, instead waving happily at his friend. The other boy waved back, smiling and beckoning him over. Takato got to his knees, pushing himself to his feet. If Jenrya was here, then so was everyone else! He had only to meet up with the other Tamer so he could be with the rest of his friends. Look, he was only a few steps away. It would be so easy just to stomp right on over and demand to join in the game of hide-and-seek: he still loved the game and it looked like everyone (except Jenrya, unless he had picked the <em>worst</em> hiding spot in the world) was playing it, because he saw no sign of the others.</p><p>
  <strong>A virus? No…not a virus…</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> A companion system?</strong>
</p><p>The expression on Jenrya's face froze, the smile suddenly looking false and hollow.</p><p>
  <strong> The companion system possesses foreign code. A compatibility scan must be initiated before merging can be authorized.</strong>
</p><p>Takato's eyes flared open, suddenly awake. At first he couldn't see anything and for a long second he thought he was blind. Stark fear gripped him. Takato tried to sit up. His hands and arms refused to budge, locked down to whatever he was lying on: his quick movement gave his arms both a sharp wrench, though, strangely enough, it didn't hurt. Takato hadn't any more luck with his head. He had done the smart thing and given himself a minor case of whiplash and a huge bruise on the forehead trying to jerk away.</p><p>Whatever surrounding him twitched at his sudden motion.</p><p>
  <strong> …?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Is this pain?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>What is this?</strong>
</p><p><em>Where am I?! </em> Takato still couldn't see. Something blocked his range of vision, something heavy, scary. Not only that, but he was surrounded with <em>things</em>: they felt like hundreds of thick coils, shifting and moving like a nest of snakes. Takato barely suppressed a terrified yelp as something brushed over his leg. For a few minutes, he struggled furiously, trying to free himself. Takato only succeeded in tiring himself out, gasping for breath.</p><p>He was trapped. He didn't know where he was, how long he'd been there. Takato sank back into his seat, feeling drained. His eyes started to water as it sank in.</p><p>The only thing that stopped him from hollering for his mom was the fact he was exhausted. His lack of vision worked much like a pair of blinders on a horse did. Because he couldn't see where he was, he didn't panic as much as he could. His eyes continued to burn as the first tear crept out.</p><p>
  <strong>Initiating scan.</strong>
</p><p>Takato's muscles tensed for a moment and then relaxed.</p><p>
  <strong>Scan complete. Compatibility confirmed.</strong>
</p><p><em>What is this? Who are you?!</em> Takato demanded, suddenly on the offensive as the involuntary tears trailed down his cheeks. He remembered the strange questions from his dream, the ones he was sure he himself had been asking.</p><p>That hadn't been him after all.</p><p>
  <strong>You are with me now. I am now your companion system, Takato Matsuda.</strong>
</p><p>The "voice" wasn't truly speaking, neither in his mind nor out loud. Strangely enough, the young Tamer had no problems understanding it, whatever "it" was. He simply knew what it meant. More like a feeling than a language.. The feeling wasn't menacing, and Takato relaxed slightly, sensing no immediate danger from the huge presence surrounding him. Heck, it might even be friendly and help him out. </p><p><em>Who are you? </em>Takato cautiously asked, trying to turn his head toward where he thought the feeling came from. It didn't occur to him the scan might have calmed his nerves down a little, why he wasn't going into a full-blown panic. Why that adrenaline flooding his system hadn't spiked further.</p><p>
  <strong>I am the Juggernaut.</strong>
</p><p>Takato started to reach up to brush away his drying tears, but only got a few centimeters before his right arm bruised itself on a thick curve of metal. Again, his skin proved to be numb to the pain he knew he should be feeling. The presence flinched. Something slithered over his right shoulder, pushing him gently back into the seat.</p><p>
  <strong>Please refrain from moving.</strong>
</p><p>Takato tried to shrug the object off, shivering. It <em>did</em> feel like a big snake, scale smooth, and he had a nasty little mental image of being surrounded by thousands of snakes, venom dripping.</p><p>
  <em>Why? I want to go home! </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Home? You belong here. We are compatible systems.</strong>
</p><p>Takato shook his head. <em>I don't know what you're talking about!</em> He felt himself stiffen as something brushed against his neck, preventing him from bolting out of the seat. Without thinking, he viciously sunk his teeth into the coil, biting down as hard as he could.</p><p>His left arm immediately exploded into pain. Something ground his skin into the bone, his nerves screaming as it gnawed mercilessly down on his wrist. Takato gasped and quickly spat out the coil, eyes starting to water again as the semi-circle of fire on his arm slowly ebbed down to a painful throb.</p><p><strong>We are symbiotic because of the corresponding nature of our programs.</strong> The Juggernaut didn't seem to be aware of the fact he bit a part of it. It only noticed his reaction.<strong> We are connected.</strong></p><p>
  <strong>But we are not one. System TAKATO MATSUDA possesses unidentified flaws. An extensive background check is required before the merging operation can further proceed. Estimated duration of background check: [LOADING] . . . . four days.</strong>
</p><p>Takato tried to blink away the tears that were forming again. <em>Background check? Flaws?</em></p><p>
  <strong> Flaw – defined as an often hidden defect that may cause failure under stress; a faulty part. Immaterial defect or weakness in something; to become defective.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I know what a flaw is!</em>
</p><p>The Juggernaut continued patiently. <strong>For a merge to be successful, it is essential one of the companion systems be flawed. System Takato Matsuda – that is, you – are very flawed, according to the scan. But because the system is still a foreign one, a background check must be taken.</strong></p><p>But Takato was just a normal kid...</p><p>One who wanted to go home, to his friends and family.</p><p>Now<em>.</em></p><p><strong>Impossible. There can be no separation once a connection is established between systems.</strong> A pause, as the Juggernaut's coils pressed in more closely on the boy's body. Almost like they were inhaling. <strong>Level 8 background check file opened. [LOADING].</strong> The coils withdrew, though several looped themselves underneath Takato's chin, keeping him pressed firmly against the head of his seat despite his struggles. He only succeeded in (intelligently) banging the back of his head into the seat and gagging as the coils tightened in reaction, then relaxed, allowing him to breathe again.</p><p>
  <strong>Background check on first imperfection: relationship with living data.</strong>
</p><p>Takato gasped as the blinders were abruptly removed, flooding with light.</p><p>The sun sprinkled the grass with a flecks of light through the leaves. It was warm weather, exactly the type he loved, and there was the slightest breeze ruffling Takato's hair. He found himself leaning against the shadow of a towering oak. It was the park where he took Guilmon to play with Juri only a few days ago. It looked a lot greener then he remembered, but he supposed he had a bad memory. What was he doing here? And was the Juggernaut still here, or had it…<em>magicked</em> him away or something?</p><p>
  <strong> No, I have not "magicked" you anywhere. The file merely picked out the first flaw and targeted on the most recent incident in your memory.</strong>
</p><p>This thing could read his mind now?</p><p><strong>The connection between companion systems allows the exchange of brainwaves and electrical signals. I do not "think" in the same way you do and I do not "read" your mind. </strong> Takato couldn't think of anything to reply, and so said nothing, only staring around in wary confusion. He still couldn't figure just how he had gotten from wherever he had been to the park.</p><p><strong>You are not actually in the park, Takato Matsuda. This is only your memory of recent events: physically, you are still in me.</strong> The Juggernaut continued, apparently deciding the conversation wasn't worth pursuing. <strong>First defect – you have established a connection between you and a collection of living data. Not only is that listed as a forbidden operation in my databanks, it has also made you further defective.</strong></p><p>For a second, Takato blinked in confusion. Collection of living data? He didn't know anything about living data…unless…<em>what, Guilmon?</em></p><p>
  <strong>Yes. The creature you refer to as Guilmon.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato felt his anger rise. He had a strong feeling this wasn't a compliment to his partner and exclaimed, "Guilmon's a great friend! He hasn't done anything to make me messed up!" He didn't like the idea there was something really wrong with him and the idea it was <em>Guilmon's</em> fault was even worse.</p><p>
  <strong>That means nothing. You depend on him, mere data, to protect you and those you care for – flesh and blood. Because of your connection with him, you have grown weak as a human.</strong>
</p><p>"T-that's not true!"</p><p>The Juggernaut ignored his protest. <strong>Humans were never meant to coexist with these digital creatures. The humans created the artificial life, but it is the data that must override the creators. A relationship between living data and humans will only lead to failure.</strong></p><p>"We're best friends!" Takato glared up at the tree, where he decided the Juggernaut's "speech" was coming from. "We're not failures."</p><p><strong>Data is superior to the human race when it bio-emerges. Humans are weak in the flesh and mortal. Data can always be deleted and sent back into the network and reformatted for another form.</strong> The leaves rattled in the breeze, rustling together. <strong>Humans die. Humans are nothing without their technology. They are weak.</strong></p><p>Takato didn't say anything, though he wished he had some earmuffs so he could clap them on his head and drown everything out. He didn't like listening to this...and he especially didn't like that despite his desperate wish to believe the Juggernaut was a complete liar, he was sure he could sense a ring of truth in its "words".</p><p>
  <strong>Living data thrives on change and progress. Like myself, it can be parasitic. It often is. Your connection with Guilmon is an example of a parasitic relationship.</strong>
</p><p>"Guilmon's not a parasite!"</p><p>
  <strong>Is he? How would you be able to tell? You always assumed since he speaks like a child, he therefore possesses the mind of a child.</strong>
</p><p>"I…" Takato trailed off. He could always deny it, insist he and Guilmon were totally equal, buddies. Friends, yeah, but sometimes he had, deep down, been convinced he was the brains of the duo, that his partner Digimon would be helpless without him. <em>I </em>did<em> treat him like a kid. I always thought I knew what was best for him because I created him…</em></p><p>The Juggernaut took his silence as a gesture to continue.</p><p>
  <strong>The creator is not always correct. How would you know if your "partner" really cared for you? Caring is a human term. I cannot feel it and it is impossible as well for digital information, for zeros and ones, to feel it.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> So how would you know? He might be using you for his own ends. This is what living data does. It has been recorded over the years.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato pushed himself away from the tree trunk. "You're just a big, dumb machine! You don't know <em>anything</em> about humans or Digimon!"</p><p>
  <strong>On the contrary. I have many files and programs regarding the subject matter. <br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato stubbornly crossed his arms behind his head, trying to appear to be relaxed and in total control of the situation. <em>This machine's wrong: it's gotta</em><em> be. What could a computer know about human emotions?</em> But the Juggernaut seemed to have him pegged. Just like a bug under the microscope. Takato shivered. If he kept the Juggernaut talking, then maybe he wouldn't have to return to that blindness. It was nicer here, to be able to see and feel, then that brief memory of the inability to see, the feeling of <em>things</em> twisting and writhing around him.</p><p>
  <strong>Your memory is more pleasant than the reality, Takato Matsuda.</strong>
</p><p>Takato pretended to ignore the "voice", making a point of staring across the park.</p><p>
  <strong>It is nice here, is it not? No Guilmon to feed. No arguments with your friends, no battles. No parents. You do not ever have to worry about Guilmon being caught and experimented on here.</strong>
</p><p>"Shut up."</p><p>
  <strong>Command invalid.</strong>
</p><p>The leaves of the towering trees whispered. <strong>Perhaps you do not see your error in your relationship with Guilmon. It is listed as a forbidden operation for a reason - a relationship with living data and a human is wrong. It is natural for the strong to conquer the weak. They cannot be "equal", because the strong are unable to resist the opportunity to manipulate the weak. </strong></p><p>
  <strong>I have little doubt your relationship with Guilmon is turning out to be such, even if your "partner" is only resorting to petty manipulations as of yet. </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Observe.</strong>
</p><p>Takato watched, rooted to the spot, as a large blotch of red exited the bushes from the opposite end of the park. Guilmon loped out, followed by two people. Takato realized with a start he was looking at himself. The other Takato trudged along, laughing and talking with Juri as he trailed after Guilmon, hands full of several bags of day old and day-day old bread from his parent's bakery.</p><p>Guilmon suddenly ran ahead, chasing after the fluttering wings of a passing butterfly. He raced away from the humans behind him toward the center of the park. The other Takato called out to him to wait up, but the Rookie didn't seem to hear him or was ignoring his calls. The other Tamer doggedly followed after him. Guilmon once again disobeyed him, as usual.</p><p>In fact, thinking about it, Guilmon disobeyed him a lot. It was like in one ear, out the other.</p><p>
  <strong> Have you wondered why Guilmon stayed with you?</strong>
</p><p>"No". <em>Yes</em>. Takato knew he wasn't the best Tamer in the world.</p><p>
  <strong>It is because humans have a strength living data do not: the power of <em>will</em>. The will of humans is purely organic, yet it is because of this that some of your species are able to wish on something and have it come <em>true</em>. It is impossible for any AI to do this. A Digimon normally needs to upload data to digivolve, but it has likely become obvious to you that your Guilmon can digivolve to his next level without uploading any data at all.</strong>
</p><p>"What does that have to do with anything?" Takato asked, watching as Guilmon ploughed recklessly through a flock of sparrows, causing the birds to scatter.</p><p><strong>Everything. A Digimon needs energy to digivolve. It has never been specified whether it has to be digital energy or some other source</strong>. The Juggernaut paused. <strong>But a digivolution still requires an energy source. It does not matter if the creature is "wild" or not…</strong></p><p>Takato didn't say anything, though he was now listening with half an ear in a sort of morbid fascination.</p><p><strong>Guilmon is using you as an energy source. </strong>This question didn't bring any answer,<strong> Your will alone enables him to reach the next level, yet you are not strong enough to control him. Not only do you fuel his digivolutions, you are also responsible for taking care of him: feeding him, playing with him, looking out after him. You fulfill any wish he has, jumping at the mere beginning of a complaint.</strong></p><p>
  <strong>The perfect little puppet.</strong>
</p><p>Takato watched as his other self tried to chase after Guilmon through the grass, still holding his partner's lunch. He realized how silly he looked then, loping along at an awkward jog after Guilmon, as Juri ran easily next to him, giggling as the other-Takato tried to juggle the bags in his hands. A trail of bread shed from the bag. Guilmon was now far ahead, losing himself in the bushes as he suddenly decided to play hide-and-seek.</p><p><em>A puppet?</em> No, Takato made his own choices. It had been his choice to stick by Guilmon's side up till now, and he wasn't going to change his mind any time soon.</p><p>
  <strong>This doesn't trouble you?</strong>
</p><p>"Guilmon's honest. And he doesn't have a shred of selfishness in him." Takato replied, "I believe in him."</p><p>The branches of the tree creaked, the light that escaped through the leaves dancing in patches on the ground. <strong>Perhaps. Perhaps not. <br/></strong></p><p>The park scene abruptly vanished, replaced with black space that stretched out for eternity, bisected by lines of blue, green and red. The digital lines wavered like a neon mirage. Takato lost contact with the ground, floating in the darkness. He was pretty sure he wasn't hallucinating, yet a little back portion of his mind kept babbling he <em>couldn't</em> be floating and that he was probably going to be afraid of heights soon.</p><p>Takato had to wonder what had happened to the park scene – and suddenly suffered a scared thought. What if the Juggernaut finished talking? Or throwing feelings at him, or whatever it did? Would he have to face being closed in again, blind?</p><p>
  <strong>No, you will not be fully conscious until the background check is completed.</strong>
</p><p>Was he asleep then? He remembered everything, didn't he?</p><p><strong>Yes and no.</strong> The Juggernaut didn't make any attempt to explain itself. <strong>Both my system and yours have recognized the first defect –</strong></p><p>
  <em>I didn't agree you were right!</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> I never said you agreed to anything, but I have not received confirmation the companion system has rejected the possibility my logic might prove correct. And I, Takato Matsuda, am incapable of lying.</strong>
</p><p>Yeah, right. <em>So where am I now?</em></p><p>
  <strong>There is a short interval of five hours before the next check will begin. I must sort all the information I am receiving from you before I will continue. Humans are complex creatures and the data will take a while to be sorted. After the background checks are completed, we will proceed with the merging.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Are all these checks like that one?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Yes. The purpose is to categorize the defects for future correction.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I'm not going to listen to you.</em>
</p><p>This earned the only slightest hesitation from the Juggernaut. The feeble threat didn't do anything to faze it.</p><p>
  <strong>It is difficult to know one's true feelings. Only an outside observer can reveal these to you, companion system. But, like all things, this will take time.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>I have all the time in the world. I am patient.</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid looked at her watch, pushing back sweaty bangs. Almost evening already? She'd been so caught up in her work she hadn't noticed the hours fly by!</p><p>The young woman sat back on her heels, examining her work. It took longer than she thought but she finally finished making the adjustments. She was miffed she hadn't been able to get back onto the Yuggoth deck. Yamaki hadn't given her the go-ahead and she was so busy she hadn't been able to remind him. <em>Dammit.</em> She let out a frustrated sigh. <em>Hope Kaminmon doesn't decide to waltz into the digital plane any time soon – I didn't get a chance to fully conceal his signature.</em> She planned to attend to that when she was with the Yuggoth system again, it was a matter of getting in there without making Yamaki suspicious.</p><p>Sneaking around like a human was more time consuming than she thought it would. She consoled herself with the knowledge that this was all for the greater good.</p><p><em>Wonder how Kaminmon's doing with his search? </em>She knew he could probably find the lost D-Arc. Her servant had an uncanny ability for zeroing in on these sorts of things. Funny...she realized she never asked him how he could sense things like those. He just did. The thing was he had to be more careful. She only reminded him if he was going to be walking around the city, he was going to have to blend in; Kaminmon assured her he would do so. He could suffer the indignity of pretending to be human if his Mistress could.</p><p>Kincaid got to her feet. Her legs protested loudly, making a general nuisance of themselves because she hadn't moved much today. She hated that part of being in this squishy human shape. The general makeup was pretty weak and frail, and it didn't take much for it to start bitching at her because she put strain on it. Not to mention it was always <em>cold!</em> No fur, just a pathetic covering of thin hair. She always ended up freezing her ass off in the Real World.</p><p><em>At least I don't have to stay like this forever.</em> She had to admit, she felt almost sorry for the humans. She only had to stay in this shape for a few months (a few years, at worst), and <em>they</em> had to stay like that from birth to death. Kincaid supposed she could be a little more thankful when she thought of it in those terms.</p><p>Kincaid left the room. Though she hadn't started the real work of shattering the gateway, the small holes in it were still open. With the size they had grown to by now, she wouldn't be surprised if a Digimon decided to show up today. <em>Someone </em><em>should warn them about the tiger waiting at the other side</em>. Hypnos was most definitely a dangerous little organization, already a sign the humans were as dangerous as she suspected. At first, it seemed like a pointless waste – she hadn't known what happened to the data when they deleted Digimon, and if another wasn't uploading it, than it was being uselessly squandered.</p><p>But then she had found out what Yamaki did with the data of the (unfortunately) deleted Digimon…</p><p><em>Collected in one nice, neat little package.</em> Kincaid couldn't help a smile of triumph at this. She probably couldn't do anything with the data – <em>she</em> didn't need to upload it – but it would be a good energy boost for the Juggernaut. The perfect way to speed up her plan. Of course, she'd have to wait until the Juggernaut and the boy merged together before she could get anything done, but it couldn't hurt to plan ahead. <em>Even with all that data, we probably won't have enough to rip apart the closed bridge.</em> To create the digital shuffle. Even if she ordered a few Golems to take a suicide dive into the Juggernaut's pool, it wouldn't make much of a difference. The Golems were merely empty vessels. </p><p>But she was fine with that. She hated sacrificing a perfectly good Digimon when a Golem would do.</p><p>Kincaid wasn't completely sure if the Golems would be able to complete the task. She never before commanded one to act as a vessel, instead of cannon fodder. Kincaid wrapped a bright purple lock of hair around one covered finger, feeling particularly smug. She was quickly moving down the corridor, smiling at those who passed her and shot an idle glance out the window. The sun was once again setting through the clearing clouds.</p><p><em>Things are going to work out. We </em>will<em> be successful – I can feel it.</em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ruki sat down on the bench, tossing her backpack next to her. Somehow she managed to slip out of the studio: all the flashing lights of the photographers and her mom's constant tinkling laughter had drove her crazy. <em>Mom's too busy preening to notice anyone else but herself.</em> Ruki thought, irritated. Despite her attempts to act detached to her mom, it bugged her. Looking pretty and getting pictures taken was apparently more important then anything else. If that was the case, then why did Mom insist on dragging Ruki along with her?</p><p>She looked up. It was still drizzling, but not enough to bother taking out her umbrella again.</p><p>Ruki glanced at the backpack. It was closed, but she knew Takato's D-Arc was still in there. She didn't like holding it. It wasn't like she superstitious or anything, but carrying it with her made her uncomfortable. It only made her more concerned about Takato; <em>concerned</em>, not worried. She would never admit to worrying over <em>anyone</em>…well, maybe with the exception of a few people and Renamon. Ruki sometimes found Takato to be annoying and immature sometimes, but she knew she didn't <em>hate</em> him.</p><p>There was a small breath of wind behind her neck.</p><p>"Ruki?"</p><p>The Tamer watched the people passing by, crowding the sidewalks. The voice was low, but audible, but with that special tone reserved only for her.</p><p>"Yes, Renamon?"</p><p>"Are you feeling any better?"</p><p>Ruki shook her head, speaking quietly as well, "I'm fine."</p><p>"You were very quiet today. I was…I was a little concerned, Ruki." Ruki glanced over her shoulder in surprise. Renamon stood under the shadows of the eves jutting out from the front of a closed store, her tail swishing behind her, only a foot away. Her snout lowered, though the fierce blue eyes were still fixed on Ruki.</p><p>"You don't need to be," Ruki said. "Sometimes I don't like talking, okay?"</p><p>Renamon padded a step closer. "Are you sure? I'm always here if you need someone."</p><p>Ruki closed her eyes for a moment. She started as she felt the gentle weight of her partner's paw resting on her shoulder, but didn't command Renamon to move away. It was a little comforting, that touch. Come to think of it, Renamon rarely, if ever, made any attempts to make unnecessary physical contact with her human partner. It had only been when Ruki was in danger would her fur even brush against the Tamer's skin. She always acted very cautiously, and only if Ruki gave her consent. Things had definitely started changing between them.</p><p>Renamon's voice sounded behind her. "Hm. The drizzle seems to be dying down."</p><p>Ruki opened her eyes, looking up. Her partner was right. It was hard to tell from where she sat (the lights were making it difficult to see the sky clearly), but it looked like the clouds were starting to scuttle away, the dim points of stars peeking out, winking mischievously down at the people below. She probably needed to get home before her grandmother started worrying -</p><p>"Ruki!"</p><p>A sharp pain in her shoulder jarred her from her thoughts. Renamon had accidentally dug her claws into her Tamer. Ruki was about to demand an explanation, glancing over angrily. But Renamon wasn't even looking at her, instead staring at something with a shocked expression on her fox's face, eyes wide.</p><p>"<em>Ow!</em> What was that for?" Ruki blurted.</p><p>Renamon muttered a distracted apology, letting go of Ruki. She was still staring however, her eyesnarrowed suspiciously. "This can't be right."</p><p>"What<em>'s</em> not right?"</p><p>"Look to your right. No, not that far right. The other side of the street – standing between the lamppost and the newsstand. Do you see him?" Renamon pointed with a claw. Ruki's gaze followed her partner's gesture.</p><p>A young boy her age stared straight at her with unblinking sky-blue eyes. Ruki froze, instantly recognizing the familiar face, that messy head of hair, the hooded shirt and long gray shorts. The stupid yellow goggles perched above his forehead…</p><p>Takato!</p><p>Ruki leapt out of her seat. <em>What's </em>Takato<em> doing here?!</em> Strangely enough, she had to wonder how he got his goggles back. Did he find Jenrya? Jenrya would've called her if Takato returned. The other Tamer had a strange expression on his face and, after a moment of deliberation, flung a smile at her like a challenge. He turned, scrambling easily over the short wall and was gone.</p><p>"We've gotta follow him!" Ruki raced after him, immediately putting thought into action and weaving her way through the crowds.</p><p>"Ruki, wait!"</p><p>Renamon's protest fell on deaf ears, as her partner darted across the street, vaulting over the wall after the other human. Ruki landed, almost fell as she landed on uneven ground, slippery with a carpet of wet leaves. She managed to regain her balance, and slid down the slope, hoping to high heaven there weren't any rocks underneath all that debris and that if there was, that she wouldn't break her neck following Takato. A strange mixture of anger and relief flooded through her. The moment she caught up with the kid, she'd definitely give him her say and demand he answer some questions.</p><p>Ruki reached level ground. It was the park, one she had been to a few times when she watched Takato and Jenrya attempt to disguise Growlmon with water-based paints. It was a pretty big field, and the furthest end of it was rarely visited. There was a flash of blue in the dimly lit darkness, which disappeared again, obscured by the thick tree trunks. Ruki chased after him. <em>What's he doing, playing games or something?!</em></p><p>"Ruki, be careful!" Renamon quickly caught up to her partner, bounding with easy leaps from tree to tree.</p><p>Ruki pounded through the wet grass, slipping and sliding. Takato was moving at a good pace. Ruki knew she was in pretty good shapembut she kept having the impression Takato was actually starting to pull away from them. Takato kept to the dense tree-filled area of the park, the patches of blue weaving in and out of the tree trunks.</p><p>Renamon sailed through the air, now a few feet ahead of Ruki. Her bushy tail lashed for balance as she landed on a branch, the branch bending under her weight. Renamon leaped into the air again, shouting down.</p><p>"He's running toward the playground, Ruki!" Renamon made contact with the ground in front of her, a yellow and purple blur as she rebounded from her crouch after Takato.</p><p>Ruki ran out into the misty clearing and stumbled to a stop, Renamon landing smoothly next to her.</p><p>"Takato!"</p><p>The boy turned at her shout. He'd stopped a few feet ahead, one foot tapping impatiently.</p><p>"You'd better have a good explanation!"</p><p>Takato only shrugged, the light from the stores in the distance reflecting off his brilliant blue eyes. The boy smiled at her and turned his back on her, looking expectantly up at the sky.</p><p>Renamon took a step forward, her hackles suddenly rising as the fog started to grow thicker. Ruki's D-Arc began to beep furiously. Renamon assumed a battle stance. "A digital field's forming, Ruki!"</p><p>"Get ready, Renamon!" Ruki ordered, pulling her D-Arc from where she hooked it on the waist of her uniform's skirt. "Takato, get over here! Unless you brought Guilmon with you, you're gonna have to sit back! I hate it when people get in my way, you know that!"</p><p>Takato ignored her warning. He didn't seem to be the least bit worried of the danger. <em>Well, fine, if he's gonna act weird on me, than that's his problem! </em>Ruki tensed herself for the upcoming battle. <em>First thing's first!</em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Sir, a field is forming at point GP-0A."</p><p>
  <em>Again?</em>
</p><p>"It's bio-emerging! Should I send a tracer out?"</p><p>"Forget it, Reika. You didn't notice it in time. Contact the collection team and have them it clean up."</p><p>"Yes, sir."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ruki pulled off her glasses as the digital field's fog swamped the park. The air stung a little bit, dropping several degrees. Beside her, Renamon kept her defensive stance, her black claws extended as she glanced over at Takato and started – the boy had abruptly turned around and was now staring at her with a strange look expression on his face. Ruki looked away, unnerved, and frowned. <em>Trust Takato to be weird at a time like this! He's </em>so<em> immature!</em></p><p>The D-Arc gave a beep to get her attention,as the holo display appeared, along with the wild Digimon's data. Ruki's eyebrows drew together as she read the text out loud. "Greymon, Champion level! Watch out for his Nova Blast and Great Horns attacks, Renamon!"</p><p>Renamon nodded as the large form of Greymon appeared from the swirling haze, "I will."</p><p>There was a thundering roar from the direction of the wild Digimon's shadow, "<em>Nova Blast</em>!"</p><p>Renamon bounded straight up into the air, drawing her legs close to her body as the fireball ripped through the air under her. The attack smashed into a tree behind her and instantly vaporized it, the trunk exploding into flaming splinters. Renamon landed easily, staring straight ahead as Greymon emerged from the fog.</p><p>The Champion Digimon was big, Ruki had to credit him with that. Greymon had to be at least triple the size of Renamon, from the tip of his orange and blue striped tail to the top of his wedge-shaped head. A blunt horn swept up from the carapace covering his head, two other horns placed just beyond the small eyes, claws decorating the stubby arms. The Tamer eyed the Digimon with an expert eye: he might have short arms, but she didn't like the look of those powerful muscles rippling across his body. <em>Strength, high stamina, probably has a really tough hide to boot</em>. She'd definitely have to use some cards to win the battle. Much as she had faith in Renamon's abilities, there was little chance she'd be able to defeat Greymon without aid from the cards or digivolving into Kyuubimon.</p><p>Renamon sized up her opponent as well. A confident smirk graced her snout, "I can't say I'm very impressed. You're pretty slow for a walking purse."</p><p>Greymon's green eyes narrowed. He snarled, "Walking purse!" Flames licked at his snout and his large head reared back. "<em>Nova Blast</em>!"</p><p>Renamon bounded away. The burst of fire buried itself harmlessly into the ground. "Ah ah, you'll have to do better than that."</p><p>The wild Digimon stepped forward, stubby claws clenching and unclenching. "You filthy little <em>rat</em>!" Greymon lowered his head, his thick tail stiff behind him. He charged, his hind legs digging into the grass and tearing up large clumps of dirt.</p><p>Ruki fished about for her deck of cards, as the battle continued. Renamon flipped over her opponent, using the top of his head to give herself momentum. She hovered in the air as Greymon stumbled to a grinding halt, the large head swiveling around, as if on ball bearings, to face her. She threw out her arms, taking the offensive as the air before her began to shimmer.</p><p>"<em>Diamond Storm</em>!" Renamon shouted. The air suddenly solidified into thousands of shining crystal shards. The spinning pieces dove down toward Greymon with a screaming wail, hundreds at a time pounding down onto his hide. With a boom, the Champion Digimon vanished as a cloud of smoke burst around him, drowning out his surprised roar.</p><p>Renamon landed in front of her opponent, her tail whipping behind her. The dust swirled thick around Greymon. She wasn't sure if she had done any damage or not. Renamon stood up, watching as the thick cloud roiled toward her. She was certain she hit him and she had fought other Champion levels before, with moderate success. Surely she didn't need to digivolve for this.</p><p>"Renamon! Time for a card slash!" Ruki called out behind her. The Tamer held out her D-Arc and card, "<em>Digi-Modify!</em> Blitz Power Blast, <em>activate!</em>"</p><p>Renamon was surrounded by a throbbing red light. Ruki normally didn't use the Blitz card that often: it basically boosted a Digimon's speed and power for a short time for a final, decisive strike, but it dropped defense and agility in order to do so. It was intended to surprise the opponent with a burst of berserker strength and catch him or her off-guard. She rarely needed to use it in the past, because Renamon had been strong enough to handle her opponents without needing to launch a surprise attack.</p><p>Ruki glanced over at Takato, who was still staring at her with that creepy expression. At least he moved a little closer, out of the way. The boy was now standing only a few feet away from her. <em>Let's get this over quickly! I don't want him running away on me again.</em></p><p>"Renamon, you know what to do!"</p><p>"I'm on it!" Renamon gritted, snout drawn back in a snarl and revealing sharp fangs. With a burst of energy that scorched the damp grass under her, she leapt off the ground and flew toward the dissipating cloud, claws extended as she soared through the air, the light of the Blitz Power Blast spiraling around her body in streamers. She sped closer to the smoke. The dust was still too thick for her to see her opponent, but she was approaching it at a high speed.</p><p>Too fast to slow down.</p><p>A dark shape erupted out of the cloud, the smoke clinging to the brown-capped snout and open jaws outstretched toward her. Renamon tried to angle herself so she could bounce off the huge horn, but failed, unable to twist herself away in time. Greymon emerged from the smoke head first, his waist-down still obscured, and, with a triumphant roar, viciously clamped down on the closest limb in reach. He plucked the other Digimon out of the air with ease. Renamon couldn't suppress the shriek of surprised pain that was ripped from her as the glow of the Blitz card faded away. She was slammed into the ground with a dull thump, Greymon's large jaws still clamped down around her right hind leg.</p><p>Ruki picked another card. She he drowned out Renamon's pain in order to concentrate. "<em>Digi-Modify!</em> Power Plug-in, <em>activate!</em>"</p><p>Renamon pulled back her free leg and delivered a stout kick that hammered her claws into Greymon's snout. He shook his head from side to side, trying to dislocate the trapped limp, but spat her out after another powerful blow landed itself on his sore nose. Renamon got to her feet, though she was now balancing her weight on her uninjured foot.</p><p>"That was a nice little trick, surprising me like that," she commented.</p><p>This earned a coughing laugh from Greymon. The Diamond Storm had only tickled him. "You're not worth my time, slave! Your cheap tricks are a joke, nothing more!"</p><p>Renamon stepped back, and exchanged glances with her Tamer, who nodded, drawing out another card. She gave a small half-smile. "You enjoy magic tricks? How about <em>this</em> one?"</p><p>Ruki slashed the card, "<em>Digi-Modify!</em> Digivolution,<em>activate!</em>"</p><p>Chaos erupted.</p><p>"Renamon digivolve to..."</p><p>Renamon began to transform into her Champion shape, her body partially obscured by a blue glow. She dropped down to all fours as the Renamon-form began to peel away like melting paint, facing Greymon. He rumbled and growled, trying to duck his head away from the almost blinding light.</p><p>Ruki began to turn around to make sure Takato was still standing next to her. She barely had enough time to gasp as she suddenly came face-to-face with the other Tamer, violet ones lost in the depth of ice blue ones. Her D-Arc was knocked out of her hand by a quick swat, flying in the air several paces behind her and landing with a splatter of mud. A pair of powerful hands wrapped themselves around her neck. The combined weight of both kids sent her tumbling toward the ground on her back.</p><p>The black sky tilted sickeningly as she fell.</p><p>
  <em>Takato!</em>
</p><p>"What ar…are you…<em>doing</em>?!" Ruki gagged as she struggled with the boy straddling her. She tried to push Takato off her with a kick, her hands trying frantically to pry the iron vise away from her throat. Takato easily fended her hands away with stinging blows, now keeping her pinned to the wet spikes of grass with one arm as he reached over her shoulder. Ruki made a strangled protest, feeling her attacker's throttling grip around her neck tighten in response. She started to feel dizzy, the world spinning and going darker.</p><p>Something was ripped from her back, the backpack straps slapping for a moment against her ear. The weakened Tamer fought to pull off the arm keeping her pressed between the ground. Takato's blue were focused on the backpack, no longer on her face. There was a tearing sound as something destroyed her backpack. Ruki caught a glimpse of something red and white in Takato's hand and suddenly the choking vise around her throat was gone, as well as the weight sitting on her.</p><p>She tried to push herself up, coughing. Takato bent down next to her and smiled. The expression looked weird, almost fake and plastic, as if he wasn't used to using his face muscles.</p><p>"I must thank you for making my search easier," he whispered. "Little fool, you're lucky I didn't kill you." He stood up, turned and vanished from her field of vision. Ruki lay where she was, trying to regain her breath, mind blank at the moment. The battle was still going on, from the sounds of the two fighting Digimon Kyuubimon had engaged her enemy into an all-out melee.</p><p>"<em>Fox Tail Inferno</em>!"</p><p>"<em>Great Horns</em>!"</p><p>There was a loud explosion, and wet clods of dirt and smoldering splinters rained down on Ruki. She feebly curled into a ball, covering her head with her arms as the clumps harmlessly bounced off her body. Her neck was killing her, and she couldn't shout out to Kyuubimon as she started to roll over onto her stomach. All that came out was a dry rasp. It rattled. She started to think coherently: that wasn't Takato! Takato didn't hurt people. Something was wrong with him - she didn't know what - but she wasn't going to let him get away with attacking her. She'd sic Kyuubimon on him if she had to. Ruki managed to get to her knees, still light-headed, and glanced around for Takato. There was no sign of him, though from the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a horse in the distance. Was she so dizzy she was seeing things?</p><p>Ruki winced as her throat throbbed.</p><p>"<em>Dragon Wheel</em>!" A blue ribbon of fire rocketed toward the larger form of Greymon, a howl tearing itself from the Dragon Wheel's serpentine head. Greymon's jaws were nearly closed, the fire tracing trails around his exposed fangs. He looked the worse for wear, his striped orange hide bruised and cut open in places, leaking data. Greymon was about to fire off another Nova Blast when Kyuubimon hit him like a whirlwind.</p><p>The fireball flew straight up into the night sky as Greymon stood stock still, eyes wide in shock. Kyuubimon crouched down as her opponent began to dissolve. She closed her eyes as she began to upload the defeated Greymon's data, the sparks being absorbed into her furred chest. With a triumphant grunt, she turned toward her Tamer as the digital field around them disappeared.</p><p>"Ruki! What happened?" Kyuubimon was quickly at her partner's side, her elegant snout bowed down in worry.</p><p>Ruki reached out and, using Kyuubimon's thick fur, pulled herself into a sitting position. It hurt to talk, but at least words were coming out now. "Takato did."</p><p>"<em>What</em>?" Kyuubimon growled, "Care to explain?"</p><p>"I'd love to…but my throat really hurts…"</p><p>"There's bruise marks all over your neck!"</p><p>"I <em>know</em>…look…find Takato and bring him back."</p><p>Kyuubimon's long snout started to quiver as she snarled.; "<em>He</em> did this to you, didn't he?"</p><p>Ruki shrugged, massaging her aching throat with one hand. "Just go get him. But you'd better not hurt him or anything."</p><p>Kyuubimon looked dangerously close to coming to an explosion, which was extremely rare, as she was normally collected. "I won't make any promises, but I'll try. Stay here." With a bound, the Digimon moved away into the darkness, the tips of her tails bobbing as she disappeared into the trees.</p><p>Ruki couldn't think of anything which would provoke that attack, nothing unless Takato snapped and went cuckoo or something.</p><p>She suddenly remembered the feeling of her backpack being ripped straight off her shoulders. With a sudden burst of energy, she crawled over to where the remains of it lay a meter away. The flap of it was ripped clean off, the bottom reduced to large scraps of cloth. Her notebooks and papers were scattered around it, dirty water seeping into her stuff. She felt a twinge of petty anger. Now she'd have to do all her homework <em>again</em> when she got home. Ruki attempted to collect the spilled folders, placing them on the ruin of her backpack. She had stacked them all on top of each other when she noticed something that made her drop the damp notebook she had in her hand.</p><p>Everything was accounted for except for one thing:</p><p>Takato's D-Arc was missing.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Lack of a Power Trip</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Juggernaut continues to prepare Takato for the merge by nosing around for weak spots in his psyche. Kincaid returns the stolen D-Arc to its rightful owner.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.</p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p><strong>Bold</strong> for the Juggernaut's "voice".</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Chapter 5 – Lack of a Power Trip)<br/><br/></strong>
</p><p>Calumon toddled along the rooftop.</p><p>He glanced about for a possible playmate. <em>Who's gonna play with me today? </em>So far no one, but it was fun wandering around, though he had to admit that he sorta wished he'd have someone to wander around <em>with</em>. The thing was to bring a friend along with you so you could have fun together!</p><p>He, however, would prove to be successful in finding someone. Even though that <em>someone</em> didn't particularly want to play at the moment.</p><p>Impmon perched on a box, squeezed between a radiators as he tried to catch some shut-eye. It wasn't easy getting to sleep – after all, it bothered him that he'd seen Renamon jumping around the skyscrapers yesterday, with that purposeful twitch in her tail that said she was on a mission. <em>Lookin</em><em>' for me, I bet. </em>Impmon closed his eyes. He started think trying to sell off information so he could stuff his mouth wasn't the smart idea he thought it was. It wasn't worth it for Fox Face to manhandle him.</p><p>After last time he wasn't exactly looking forward to a repeat. <em>Those dumb Digi-slaves working their tails off for those humans.</em><em> Fox Face wouldn't be so nasty if she didn't follow that precious brat of hers!</em> Impmon himself had bad experiences with humans – especially kids – and couldn't figure out for the life of him what they got in return for scraping and bowing to their "Tamers". It was like the world's worst joke and no one was laughing.</p><p>It wasn't like he was jealous. Totally not jealous. Why would he want to be a slave to some human? Being told what to do, what to say, how to act and how to play. Nope, he definitely didn't want to deal with them again.</p><p>"Oooh, are you talking to yourself? Can I join in? It looks fun!"</p><p>Impmon jumped out of his skin.</p><p>"Over here, silly!"</p><p>Impmon looked up, and made a face of disgust. He knew this Digimon from seeing him several times. It was the whiny one who sometimes traveled with those so-called Tamers. He scowled, "What d'<em>you</em> want?"</p><p>Balancing on a thin pipe running between the two radiators, Calumon grinned, his ears expanding to their full size. "I wanna play, of course!" He seemed to have completely forgotten Impmon's past attempt to absorb his data.</p><p>"Go away!"</p><p>But the small Digimon wasn't listening, still babbling on; "So, can I join in your game? It looked sorta fun – you were nodding and shaking your head like <em>this</em>," here he demonstrated, shaking his head furiously. "And looking all serious. Must be fun if you're concentrating so hard!"</p><p>Impmon didn't feel like trying to figure out the other's logic, "Y'deaf or something? I said t'go away!"</p><p>"But - "</p><p>Impmon held up a gloved paw, a small fireball igniting in his palm, " - I don't feel like playin'! What part of <em>no</em> don't ya understand?"</p><p>The oversized ears on Calumon's head shrunk down. He made a sad face, "Aww…why not? You're not doing anything…and neither am I…and it's more fun if we play together instead of being all serious and stuff alone."</p><p>Impmon thought about this – for about three seconds.</p><p>"Get lost!"</p><p>"Can I at least hang out around here for a while?" Calumon said, "I won't make you play with me if you don't wanna."</p><p>Impmon leaned back into his makeshift seat, the fireball vanishing with a small puff of smoke. He didn't feel like moping some more (which was exactly what he had been doing up till now) and it would be different from the usual routine, having someone else nearby. Besides, he wouldn't admit it, not even to himself, but the company would be nice, and he wouldn't be feeling so sorry for himself.</p><p>"Fine," came the gruff reply.</p><p>Calumon cheered loudly into Impmon's ear and let go of the piping, landing on a ledge near the other Digimon's knee. The In-Training bounced from paw to paw.</p><p>"Ooh, you're being serious again!" Calumon giggled, "You look so funny when you make those faces!"</p><p>"I ain't makin' faces!"</p><p>"Are too!" Calumon responded, and abruptly made an exaggerated frown, trying to make his huge eyes as small as he could in a beady squint, "Like this. So serious!"</p><p>"I<em> ain't</em> serious!" Impmon replied indignantly. He laughed to prove it.</p><p>"That doesn't count! That was fake."</p><p>"So you're the laugh expert, huh?" The Rookie shot back hotly.</p><p>Calumon beamed. "Silly, you can't <em>force</em> a laugh! It's natural – it just comes out when you're really happy. Like, when you're playing a game with a bunch of friends and you're winning and everyone's cheering," he held up his stubby paws in a makeshift funnel, imitating a shouting bystander, " '<em>Go</em><em> Calumon</em>! You can do it!' and you're having fun being with your friends and waving to everyone and you laugh 'cause it's really fun…" he trailed off as he caught his breath.</p><p>Impmon scratched the back of his head in puzzlement, "So you laugh when you win?"</p><p>Calumon giggled again, "Yup! It's a lot of fun, winning! But I always laugh when I'm doing something fun."</p><p><em>Is that my problem, then? I haven't won </em>anything<em>, not even one of those pathetic human games…</em>The In-Training seemed to be around humans a lot, though he didn't trip after any "Tamer's" heels. Was he like Impmon, then? Nah.<em> I'm the only one with th' brains to see that there's nothin' to be gained from hanging onto to a human. </em>Impmon couldn't remember all the details of his encounter with a human, but he what he did remember was confusion and pain – that, and whenever he tried to attach a name to the face (he kept getting plagued by a flash of blond hair, of braids), he only got a headache. Still, Calumon might have some interesting points. Winning might be everything.</p><p>"So, yer Calumon, right?" Impmon asked, too curious to feel annoyed anymore.</p><p>"Yup! Calumon, Culumon, Kurumon," he hopped in place, emphasizing his words, "It doesn't matter! I'm <em>me-e</em>!"</p><p>Impmon rubbed at one ear, wincing, "Yeah, I figured. So, y'hang around humans a lot or somethin'?"</p><p>"They're a lot of fun sometimes! The humans with the other Digimon are fun too. Especially <em>Guilmon</em>! You ever met Guilmon?"</p><p>Impmon tried to remember. "Might've."</p><p>"He's a <em>lot</em> of fun – you should play with us sometime: you wouldn't be so scowly then."</p><p>"I ain't scowly."</p><p>Calumon hopped down from his little ledge, "Then play with us sometime! Otherwise you're scowly! Scowly, scowly, scowly!"</p><p>Scowling, Impmon was about to give his answer when an excited squeal cut him off.</p><p>"<em>He-e-ey</em>! Look, um…" Calumon was tottering toward the fence edge, pointing as he tried to come up with the other Digimon's name.</p><p>"Impmon."</p><p>"Impmon! Look, something else to play with!" Calumon gestured frantically at something. Impmon was tempted to ignore him, but after a moment he jumped down from the box, strolling casually after Calumon so it wouldn't look like he was interested. He was soon standing behind the shorter Digimon, trying to figure out what got the little squirt so excited.</p><p>"I don't see anything."</p><p>Calumon pointed again, "Over there - that misty thingie over that tall house. Maybe we should say hi?"</p><p>Impmon shaded his eyes with one paw, blocking out the red glare of the lights. At first he didn't see anything interesting, just what looked like a harmless cloud floating above one of the city's many skyscrapers. It didn't strike him as weird. What <em>did</em> was the fact the small patch of cloud was starting to spin into a flat spiral. He might not be an expert on the human's Real World, but he knew clouds didn't start making weird shapes like that.</p><p>The two small Digimon watched as the mist began to whirl around at a faster pace, turning until it was perpendicular to the skyscraper's level roof.</p><p>Impmon stiffened as he felt something approaching. Next to him, Calumon shrank down as if he wanted to back away from the rapidly spinning cloud. <em>Is this a digital field?</em> He could definitely feel a Digimon close by. It felt somehow like it could eat Calumon and him for breakfast.</p><p>Something slowly started to emerge from the mist, which was beginning to resemble a foggy gate instead of a cloud. It was still too far away and too dark to see clearly, and he couldn't tell who was the Digimon starting to pull itself from the gateway.</p><p><em>Don't tell me it's another one of those Digi-slaves goin' to his "Tamer"</em>…</p><p>Calumon shivered, ears shrinking down. "Oh, let's go! I don't like this anymore."</p><p>"In a sec," Impmon replied, still watching. The Digimon pulled itself completely from the mist. It looked from this distance almost like a Unimon, but the resemblance didn't go that far. Not unless Unimon suddenly sprouted dark fur, lost a few (try fifty) pounds, and grew what looked like wings from its head. And got a <em>serious</em> case of the uglies. Half of its face was gnarled fangs. Like skin stretched against a rack of bones. From what he could see, Impmon knew this Digimon wouldn't be entering any beauty contests soon. The strange Digimon glanced around like he was scoping the joint out.</p><p>Impmon couldn't help starting as the distant Digimon's head suddenly swiveled around to look right at him. Or was it? It was dark, there was no way it would have seen the two. The Digimon's dark shadow turned away and Impmon let out the breath he was unconsciously holding as the Digimon bounded away from the lit tower, disappearing from view.</p><p>Calumon shook himself, turning around to face the slightly taller virus-type.</p><p>"I don't <em>like</em> him. He doesn't feel like he was any fun, " he complained.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kaminmon sailed between the skyscrapers, the feathered wings on his head outstretched. It was a long journey. Traveling constantly between realities through his Digital Mist was tiring. The Champion landed on a sloping roof with a clatter of cloven hooves and began to canter quickly up the tiled slope so he could get a running start for another long leap, his wings flapping for leverage.</p><p>His tongue lolled out around the red D-Arc he held clamped between his fangs.</p><p><em> I could have just stayed in that form – it did have those paws and it would have made it easier to carry this cursed thing.</em> Kaminmon realized, pushing himself away from the rooftop, sailing up toward a taller building. Too bad that body would've been shattered at the first jump. Still, he had to admit, it had been mildly enjoyable, walking around in that form – laughing at the weaklings walking oblivious to him – and his encounter with the girl was even more entertaining. She must be Ruki Makino, another Tamer. It was the closest he'd been to being a part of the historic Purges, with that grip on her throat.</p><p><em>Maybe I should ask Mistress if I could have permission to kill next time.</em> At this thought, Kaminmon's long tongue brushed against the slick plastic surface of the strangely shaped Digivice. <em>She won't be so cruel as to deny me this entertainment.</em></p><p>Kaminmon thoroughly enjoyed attacking the young girl. He loved taking her frail body down to the ground, the feeling of her struggling to stop him from choking her. The Champion didn't have an extensive knowledge of human physiology, but he assumed they were vulnerable in the same places he probably would be. Kaminmon let out an almost content sigh around the Digivice clasped in his mouth<em>. Maybe next time.<br/></em></p><p>With a snap, his wings unfurled, the feathers ruffling as he took another graceful dive off the building, moving easily through the early darkness of the morning. A jolt as he landed on the roof and immediately rebounded off, his mane of thicker fur whipping behind him in the wind. Kaminmon once against took to the air. He was still thinking back to his encounter with Ruki Makino as he neared his destination. That experience was very enjoyable. <em>One I'd like to repeat. Perhaps with a different one? Humans are so random that it would probably be a different reaction…</em></p><p>Now wouldn't <em>that</em> be something to look forward to? Almost like a little lottery.</p><p>If only he'd been alive during the Purges!</p><p><em> I've never had a chance to inflict harm on a human befor</em>e. Golems and other Digimon didn't count, but it had been necessary so he could digivolve. As for the Golems…it didn't matter <em>what</em> happened to those things. They were only useful for following orders. It was a new thought, hurting another creature for no other reason than seeing it in pain. <em>Must be something in my code.</em> He knew he was an unnatural virus-type – he was proud of it too. It made him strong, made him worthy of being picked for this. Being a part of history. And there was nothing wrong with thoroughly...enjoying what he did, too.</p><p>It might be his primary function, but he reminded himself he had enough self-restraint to see that he carry out his Mistress's plan before he went off to do his own thing. The Mistress had been the only one who took pity on him when he was at his weakest. He vowed to repay the debt.</p><p>Kaminmon landed with a dull clacking of hooves meeting tile. This was as far as he could go before he'd be completely lost. Kaminmon could vaguely feel the presence of his Mistress, but she could be anywhere within the five kilometer area. With a grunt, Kaminmon settled down onto his knees, hind legs folding under him, his winged ears closing with a snap.</p><p>He closed his bright blue eyes, concentrating. With a nauseating sensation, his awareness began to expand as he extended his aura. Images of random humans, of animals, of memories, began to assault him. The Champion didn't give himself time to be overwhelmed by the vast amounts of information assaulting him – he blocked out everything, summoning up how his Mistress looked here, how she smelled, her distinctive presence. That sense of casual power.</p><p><em>My lady, </em>he called, the words echoing in his ears. <em>Mistress, I succeeded.</em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Takato once again floated in the black space.</p><p>He didn't know how long he'd been sitting around here, bored out of his mind, although he had a feeling it was at least several hours. At first he was fascinated with watching the shimmering digital lines, had stared as they changed from being relatively straight to forming complex shapes that resembled mountains and moving water. It quickly got boring. Still, he supposed it was better than having some supposedly "harmful" defect getting pointed out – especially when he had this niggling feeling the Juggernaut might be right.</p><p>The last "check" was relatively short. It had been quick, although he made a point of doing everything he could to show he wasn't listening to the Juggernaut's logic.<em> Really didn't matter, I guess.</em> Because here he was, back again in what he was beginning to realize was the waiting room. There wasn't much to do, except wonder what was going to happen to him and that his friends were worried about him. He couldn't see any possible way out of this weird dream state – the Juggernaut would read his mind or something anyway and he'd probably end up hurting himself in the process.</p><p>
  <strong> Catching on quickly, I see. Excellent. You can adapt to situations when the need arises. </strong>
</p><p>Takato only grunted in reply. The Juggernaut hadn't made any attempt to initiate any conversation ever since he was left here. Takato stopped after awhile, seeing he wasn't making any progress in getting any useful information from the computer. So if the Juggernaut was suddenly starting to pay attention to him, then that meant…</p><p><strong>That I am almost done dealing with the data from you?</strong> <strong> Correct.</strong></p><p><strong> Five hours have nearly elapsed.</strong> A thin string of static, which disappeared quickly, interrupted the black space around Takato.<strong> A word of advice, companion system. </strong>Takato said nothing, listening to the slightly altered tone of the Juggernaut. <strong>There's no point in fighting against programming - both yours and mine will intersect so that our goals are one. It has been set. Struggling will accomplish nothing.</strong></p><p>
  <em>I don't see why you'd have such a problem with it, because I'm not going to sit back in here forever.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> You do not have a choice.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>There's always a choice.</em>
</p><p>Another string of crackling static. <strong>There is never a choice, especially here. We have already begun the primary stages of integration, and – unless your programming can override mine, which is impossible - "choice" is irrelevant.</strong></p><p>Takato winced, as the static grew louder, clapping his hands over his ears.</p><p>The Juggernaut apparently noticed it too. <strong>This is only mild interference, Takato Matsuda. It will be over. You must learn to ignore minor discomfort if you are to be able to carry out our projected goal efficiently.</strong> A pause, and the white noise gone. <strong>There. Now we will continue with the background check.</strong></p><p><em>Oh, goody.</em> Some more quality time with the Juggernaut. Just what the doctor ordered.</p><p>The Juggernaut didn't notice the sarcasm or it was ignoring him, something it seemed to do a lot. The black space glimmered, the digital lines running through it vanishing like smoke.</p><p><em>Now where're we? </em>Takato hesitated. He was now sitting on a railing lining the sidewalk. Again, the area looked to be deserted; as he looked around, he couldn't see a living soul, although he could definitely see that people had been here not too long ago. Cars were still parked along the street, doors to shops swinging open, and further down the street, the Tamer could see an electronics store brandishing a large selection of TVs and computers, though all the screens were blank. A dog barked in the distance.</p><p><em>Where is everyone?</em> Takato began to find the abandoned street creepy. <em>People don't just vanish for no reason at all…</em></p><p>An advertising sign from a nearby store fell over with a thump, causing the boy to jump at the sound. The howls of the lone dog died down as the animal paused for another breath.</p><p><strong>West Shinjiku</strong><strong>. You should recognize it, considering that you were here only seven days ago. </strong>A small bird fluttered down, landing a small food stall's windowsill only a few feet away. The sparrow regarded him with its cold, bead-like eyes.</p><p>Takato shifted into a comfortable position from his perch on the railing. So it was a bird this time? Last check, the Juggernaut's avatar had been, of all things, a dandelion. For some reason, a talking flower struck him as hilarious and he had spent a couple minutes laughing uncontrollably while the computer waited for him to finish. After that, he sobered quickly.</p><p>It hadn't been that funny.</p><p>Takato remembered now he had been on this very road not too long ago, when he was hanging out with Jenrya. But where was his best friend? He didn't see Jenrya anywhere, and he clearly remembered there had been people along the sidewalks. <em>Last time I went, it was crowded</em>, he argued, not for the sake of winning, but in hopes he'd distract the Juggernaut.</p><p><strong>I have the ability to modify the way you perceive your memories here. I took the liberty of removing the people so there would be a minimal amount of distraction.</strong> The sparrow cocked one black eye on the boy. <strong>This is all I can do, until I'm further integrated into your system and possess more influence. I am not able to permanently modify your memories as of yet.</strong></p><p>Takato's eyes widened, "You're going to change my memories?!" He squeaked.</p><p>
  <strong> Only what is unnecessary for my programmed purposes. You'll find 10% is not much. Besides, humans modify your own memories all the time: forcing yourselves to forget things you do not want to remember, embellishing minor occurrences until they become legends in their own right. Your race is the only one capable of lying to themselves and truly believing that lie.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> A deceitful species.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato eyed the Juggernaut-sparrow: he didn't like hurting animals or anything, but right now he was seriously considering the prospects of dropkicking the avatar into the next city. Maybe the next time zone if he could. No doubt the thing would appear right next to him, but he'd feel a little better showing some resistance instead of sitting here like a block of wood. Takato had a feeling any show of force would be pretty much useless. The sparrow hopped closer, almost challenging.</p><p><strong> But I am deviating from the matters at hand.</strong> Was Takato imagining it, or was the bird bearing an amused air? <strong>It appears I am already starting to learn your human phrases. I find this…humorous, is it? Yes, I think that is the word.</strong> The sparrow's head tilted, still staring at him. In the distance, the abandoned dog started barking again.</p><p>Takato didn't it as funny as the Juggernaut apparently did. He crossed his arms over his chest and glanced around, wishing this would be over.</p><p><strong>Eager now to proceed?</strong> The bird hopped along its perch, its head turned to regard Takato. <strong>Very well.</strong> A few more bobbing hops, the Juggernaut's avatar rustling its wings. <strong>Let me ask you a question first: what is it you desire most in this world, companion system? The one thing you would do anything for, even <em>kill</em> for? What is it?</strong></p><p>Takato shook his head, not liking the Juggernaut's change in its approach, asking suspiciously, "What kind of question is this?"</p><p><strong>A relevant one.</strong> <strong> Answer it.</strong></p><p>He didn't see any reason why he should.</p><p>
  <strong>I do not ask this for my own sake, Takato Matsuda.</strong>
</p><p>"Then why ask at all?"</p><p>
  <strong><em>You </em>need to know.</strong>
</p><p>Takato fell silent. He didn't want anything. He certainly wouldn't kill anyone for something he might want. For a moment, his stomach heaved at the thought of killing someone and he thought he was going to violently sick.</p><p><strong>What is it you desire most in this world? </strong>The Juggernaut repeated. <strong>What is it you desire?</strong></p><p>"Nothing! I don't want <em>anything</em>!" Takato finally snapped at the sparrow, his discomfort growing.</p><p><strong>Correct. And that is the problem as well. You had only one desire you would kill for, one wish that <em>should</em> have been impossible to fulfill.</strong> The Juggernaut said. <strong>You wanted a companion, a "friend" who could fight your battles for you. In the end, it was only a matter of power – because you were too weak to stand up to yourself, you managed to create someone do to it for you. Because you received your wish, you have no strong desires. No longer do you have anything to motivate you onward.</strong></p><p>
  <strong>You once wanted power. You wanted a strength you, subconsciously, knew you lacked.</strong>
</p><p>"I don't know what you're talking about."</p><p>
  <strong>You only refuse to acknowledge it. All humans crave something beyond their wish: it is a trait reserved for the living. This drives you forward in your short lives, trying to achieve the impossible. It gives meaning to your existence.<br/></strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>You do not desire power now. That in itself makes you defective as a human when your entire race thrives on strength.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato scowled, pushing himself away from the railing he had been leaning against. Why was he standing here listening to this? He headed down the abandoned sidewalk, not caring where he went. As long as he put some distance between him and the computer.</p><p>
  <strong>Running away? You prefer fleeing instead of facing an obstacle? Some call that the act of a coward.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Shut up!</em>
</p><p>The Juggernaut continued, the bird remaining where it was. <strong>Where will you escape to? There is nowhere to run. You do not even possess the power to run from me. Where is your strength, once you are separated from your Digimon? You are only capable of running in circles. A mouse caught in a simulated maze.</strong></p><p>Takato sped his pace up into longer strides, now running blindly down the sidewalk. He kept his head down, not looking where he was going. No matter how fast he ran or how far he drew away from the sparrow, the words followed him, echoing around in the air, the empty buildings, in the deserted streets. Takato pounded down the sidewalk, his steps reverberating across the walls, as if he was in a deep canyon. The stores blurred past him.</p><p><strong> Why do you run when you know there is no place to hide, companion system? I derive no pleasure from pursuit, </strong>said the Juggernaut. <strong>I confront you with your imperfections because they can be fixed. Not because it pleases me. I am incapable of pleasure. </strong></p><p>Takato began to slow down, his breakneck pace eventually coming to a stop. Gasping for breath, the young boy bent over, hands on his knees. He'd covered a big distance – he knew he did – but it looked like he hadn't gone anywhere at all. His legs threatened to give out under him, his knees shaking.</p><p>
  <strong>You hate it, don't you? That I know more about you than you do.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato glanced up at the sky, which was an agonizingly cheerful shade of blue. Of course he did!</p><p><strong>I do not pinpoint your flaws simply to antagonize you. I do this because <em>you</em> can aid in correcting them.</strong> The Juggernaut paused, the sparrow winging its way toward the Tamer. <strong>If it may comfort you, all humans are flawed, not just you. None match the projected ideal that has been programmed into me by my creator. "It is the most flawed ones that have a chance of redemption". </strong>It quoted.<strong> You should consider yourself lucky. You will succeed where others failed.</strong></p><p>Takato started as the bird landed on his shoulder. He winced, as if a scalding iron touched him.</p><p><strong>Consider this, Takato Matsuda. You will need learn to be strong very quickly. You must be ready to use any means necessary to fulfill our goal.</strong> A hesitation, and the Juggernaut asked, with an unusually crafty tone. <strong>You wish to protect those you care about, correct?</strong></p><p>
  <em>…Well…yeah…but…</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> If you are so stubborn that you cannot recognize the defects within you, you will be in no position to protect anyone.</strong>
</p><p><em>…stop it.</em> The protest was half-hearted now.</p><p><strong>You only need to become strong and accepting of power.</strong> The tiny bird's talons pricked his skin, easily piercing through the blue clothing of his shirt. <strong>In order to do that, you must be accepting of me, for I am power.</strong></p><p><strong> As we speak, my influence grows. I am spread underneath more than half of this city and yet I still continue to expand. I could have access to any part of </strong> <strong>Tokyo</strong> <strong>, yet I do not have the ability to do so. I am latent. Without something to drive me, I cannot run at full efficiency. I sleep in a similar way as you do. Power without a guiding hand. Because I am an inorganic system, I do not possess the <em>will</em> to force action.<br/></strong></p><p>
  <strong>You, on the other hand, are the exact opposite. You are only human. Mortal. You have little to no influence on others. You would be lucky to even live past the age of seventy, but a blink to a machine of my caliber. You can be terminated with no difficulty. If you suddenly vanished off the face of the planet, no one – but a select few – would even notice, much less care. But you have a special ability: you have your organic Will, the guiding force required to carry out my objective. You have the power to use my influence throughout the city, whereas I do not. You are the true eyes of the two companion systems.</strong>
</p><p><strong> We are two components that only need to be fit together to make the perfect whole. Do you not see this? You need to be ambitious, to be as ruthless as a machine. You need to be ready and willing to use my strength, whatever the obstacles. </strong>The sparrow bobbed its head, the unblinking beady eyes staring at Takato. <strong>I know you better than anyone on this Earth.<br/></strong></p><p>A long pause.</p><p>
  <strong>I <em>need</em> you, and this need is what disturbs you, is it not?</strong>
</p><p>Takato shivered. He couldn't bring himself to put his trust in this strange being.</p><p>
  <strong>But you are unable to completely ignore what I say either. There is something intriguing about it and this…interests you.</strong>
</p><p>Takato kept silent, although he knew he had thought of something that betrayed him.</p><p><strong>Perhaps there is hope. Your will is weak, but with proper attention, it can become the driving force I need.</strong> It felt like the Juggernaut was (impossibly) regarding Takato with an amused expression. <strong>Soon you will crave power once again and then you will be ready to access the systems at your disposal.</strong></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p><em> This isn't working.</em> Jenrya realized, with a yawn.</p><p>He had been up all night yesterday and hadn't gotten much sleep. Running around trying to look for Takato again hadn't been very productive, and the only hint at progress was the yellow goggles sitting on his cluttered desk. <em>Not to mention we spent all that time trying to chase down that Digimon Terriermon said he felt. </em>Of course, by the time Terriermon pinpointed the digital field's location, and they managed to get to the park, there was no sign of any new Digimon. Only new ditches that gaped in the ground, a few trees shattered into toothpicks and a splotch of mud that had been trampled through. He didn't have a doubt what happened – obviously, Ruki had been in the area, and she confronted the wild one and won. Like usual.</p><p>Which made Jenrya feel pretty stupid for rushing over for nothing.</p><p>Now Jenrya and his partner picked their way through the damp sidewalks. He wasn't surprised he hadn't come across Takato. As the days passed, his hopes dropped lower and lower.</p><p>And still life continued as normal, even though his best friend was still missing.</p><p>"Really poured last night," said Terriermon from his usual perch on his partner's head. He chuckled. "Betcha Guilmon must've had a blast."</p><p>"Terriermon…"</p><p>The Rookie blinked at his tone, " Momentai, Jenrya. It was a joke. Y'know, <em>joke</em>?"</p><p>"More like sarcasm," Jenrya replied. He pillaged his refrigerator before he left and was now carrying a bag of groceries in one hand. Ruki hadn't volunteered to watch after Guilmon, now that Takato was indefinitely missing, so it looked like he would have to take on that responsibility. "I'm not really in the mood for jokes. Sorry."</p><p>Terriermon was silent for a moment before speaking up again, "What're we going to do? I'm sure Guilmon must've noticed something's wrong by now."</p><p>"I don't know. What we need to do is make sure he doesn't starve."</p><p>A laughing snort, "He's <em>always</em> starving. I've never seen that glutton get full."</p><p>"He's not the only one I know who pigs out."</p><p>"Hey, I do <em>not</em>!"</p><p>Jenrya shook his head, "When you eat more than you weigh, I think I'd call it pigging out."</p><p>"I call it eating right."</p><p>"Same thing," Jenrya shrugged. He continued down the sidewalk, trying to look like he didn't see the occasional glances thrown at him from the few people walking along the streets. He knew it was weird for him, a boy his age, to be walking around with what everyone assumed was a stuffed animal - especially when he appeared to be talking to it. Jenrya steadily ignored the stares aimed his way as he passed a row of TV screens.</p><p>"Hey, hold on a minute," Terriermon said.</p><p>Jenrya stopped in his tracks, "What's up?"</p><p>"What's this?</p><p>Jenrya glanced about and came face-to-screen with one of the store's TVs. He took a step back before he blinded himself, "This?"</p><p>"Yeah. This show."</p><p>Jenrya focused on it. On the screen were six kids standing on the edge of a cliff. They seemed vaguely recognizable, and the show had to be a rerun, because it looked at least a few years old. He'd seen this before, he realized, and he recognized the small animals the kids were holding, the steel-lined goggles on one of the boy's heads, a tall girl with a pink cowboy hat. "Oh, that's <em>Digimon Adventure</em>. It ended two years ago, but it's still really popular."</p><p>"Didn't know they had a show on us…" Terriermon mused.</p><p>"It finished its run before you arrived."</p><p>"Huh, so that explains it. But I thought you people didn't know about Digimon."</p><p>"It was based off a game someone started a few years ago. Except for us, I think everyone still believes you guys are only cards or game characters," Jenrya replied. He turned away, continuing down the sidewalk. Terriermon still seemed interested in the show, so he added, "I have a bunch of tapes at home, if you want to watch it. It's about these kids who go to the Digital World."</p><p>Terriermon shook his head thoughtfully, "Nah, I think I'll pass. I was just thinking that it sounded awfully familiar to something I'd heard a long time ago, but…never mind."</p><p>Jenrya shrugged. He had to admit, he was curious about what was on his partner's mind, but he decided not to pry into the matter. Though...it did remind him he really <em>didn't</em> know that much about Terriermon before he'd met him. <em>Guess he's going to tell me what he's thinking sometime.</em></p><p><em>Wonder what I should do now?</em> Looking for Takato was starting to feel increasingly stupid. He knew he wouldn't be finding his friend any time soon without a better plan. Still, the idea he should just give up didn't sit well. Jenrya headed down a less crowded ally, passing through the shadows. He'd considered trying to call another meeting, but decided against it. He didn't feel he had the right to keep calling everyone like that, making them drop whatever they were doing just so he could <em>try</em> to come up with a plan of action. Nothing had changed. Some leadership material, huh?</p><p>Jenrya cut through an intersecting alley, following it until he came out into the paved paths of the park. It had been a few days since he'd been here, and the pavement was a dark gray from the showers last night. Branches had been blown down from the fierce winds a few hours ago, forcing him to take it easy. The nearby trees creaked. You better believe that he kept an eye and ear out in case one of those big, old branches decided to come crashing down.</p><p>Before long, Jenrya and Terriermon n reached the top of the damp staircase. The area was a clutter of leaves and still-drying puddles. The concrete shed had easily withstood last night's storm, the tall barred gate still shut. Jenrya approached the small building, reaching out and undoing the latch as he peered inside.</p><p>"Takato?" came a sleepy voice.</p><p>Jenrya pulled the door open, "No, it's Jenrya."</p><p>Guilmon glanced up from his dirt nest at the back of the small room, eyes blinking in surprise at the unexpected visit. Jenrya stepped inside. No sign Takato might've dropped in to visit his partner, though Jenrya knew there was little chance of <em>that</em> happening. Still, his imagination kept insisting he keep his hopes up.</p><p>Guilmon padded over, sniffing curiously at the bags Jenrya set on the ground, "What's this?"</p><p>"Breakfast," Jenrya said as he knelt down. Terriermon hopped off his shoulder as Guilmon began to sift through the various items of food in the bags. "Thought you might be getting bored of bread."</p><p>Guilmon settled back, eying the five egg rolls he held pinned between his claws, "I could never get bored of bread! Or peanut butter – I love peanut butter!" He began shoveling the food from the bags into his mouth, "…so, when's Takato coming over? He's gonna get <em>two</em> tackles now!"</p><p>Terriermon shot a glance at Jenrya.</p><p>"Not today," he said haltingly, "…actually…he…ah…"</p><p>Terriermon joined in, seeing he was having some trouble, "He had to go away for a while."</p><p>"He did?" Guilmon's winged ears drooped. "How come he didn't tell me?"</p><p>"How would I know? Do I <em>look</em> like Takato to you?"</p><p>"No, but…do you know when he's coming back?" Guilmon's wings drooped even lower as the two shook their heads. He hadn't seen his friend for three days now, and it hurt to think Takato took off somewhere (somewhere probably fun) without him. Why would Takato leave without him? <em>Maybe I did something he didn't like…but Takato always forgives me later. </em>Guilmon tried to recall any recent incidents that might've gotten Takato mad at him. <em>Don't think it's about me digivolving to Growlmon…what about that time I snuck out with Impmon? Nah…he got over that…maybe it's the time I accidentally sat on that lunch his mom made…</em></p><p>That didn't seem right. It probably wasn't the time Guilmon'd sat on <em>him</em> either…</p><p>It never occurred to him maybe his Tamer wasn't having the time of his life. For all Guilmon knew, Takato was sitting somewhere having a lot of fun, surrounded by peanut butter, bread, and candy. Guilmon sighed mournfully around a particularly large cracker he was munching on.</p><p>
  <em>Wish Takato took me with him…</em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ruki Makino herself did nothing that day, save sleep and hope her swelling throat would feel better in the morning.</p><p>Her grandmother puttered about the house, sensing her granddaughter wasn't feeling well. She quietly did her best to elevate the younger girl's discomfort, deciding it was best not to ask. Renamon hovered about the lot's premises, her ice eyes warning bodily harm if she laid them on that certain boy.</p><p>Strangely enough, considering his attack from the night before, he was nowhere to be found.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid let her lips curl into a faint smile as she felt the weight of the Digivice bounce in her uniform's pockets. It was mildly surprising how quickly her servant returned to her with his success. <em>One of the reasons he serves </em>me<em>, not someone else, like Nagamora. </em>Not that she had a problem with the man – though she knew "man" wasn't quite the right term. Nagamora was like her. Better than human. He was the first: <em>he</em> had been situated in Tokyo for over seven years, the saint.</p><p>She was amazed he hadn't gone insane from dealing with swarms of humans.</p><p>Kincaid supposed Nagamora was more patient than she was. He didn't seem to mind being surrounded by them as much as she or Kaminmon did – probably a "duty" or "honor" thing. Her cohort was big on "honor", which was most likely why he volunteered for operation in the first place. He was in charge of opening the way for the others, and he took his job as the Founder very seriously. She, on the other hand, intended to get as much entertainment as she could. She had been elected to be the Deceiver months after Nagamora began the infiltration.</p><p><em>So who's next? Founder, Deceiver..</em>. <em>The Shield comes next. The Founder, the Deceiver, the Shield, the Sword, and the Ruler. </em>She had her own suspicions as to who might be chosen as the Shield and the Sword.</p><p><em>Greymon</em><em> will probably be the Sword</em>, Kincaid reflected as she headed down into the depths of the building.</p><p>She remembered meeting the Digimon years ago, only a few months after "the incident". Greymon's loss she couldn't understand. The idea of willingly serving a human gave her the heebie-jeebies. All she knew was she had seven Digimon on her paws, seven who would probably attempt to delete themselves if they weren't watched. Nagamora had a little talk with them but it was still an uphill took months to get them back on track. To fix the damage the humans had done to them.</p><p>By the time Kincaid was sent to the Real World, all had once again reverted to their Champion forms. Some had even gone further. Their memory of the Digital World disaster faded enough that they could be productive members of society. That was what the reports had said, anyway. The second time she'd seen some of them, they had been raring for action: Greymon and Garurumon stood out above the rest, shining examples of redemption. <em>If Greymon becomes the Sword, then he'll probably be rewarded for it. I wouldn't be surprised if he was given enough data to digivolve to War Greymon. </em>That would be a sight!</p><p>Now that the Founder and the Deceiver were in place, all that was needed was to open the rifts wide enough to allow the main forces through. The Shield would have to do what no one has accomplish, ever: breaching the barrier between the Digital and Real World, large enough for a full-scale invasion. Kincaid had to wonder who would be chosen for the Shield. She had her opinions about who it should be, but in the end, it was the Council's decision about who the Digimon would ultimately be. Kincaid shook her head. She should really concentrate on her job, not daydreaming about when the human threat would finally be under control.</p><p><em>Such as what I'm going to do with this Digivice</em>. Actually, she already knew what she was going to do with it. It was more of a matter as to what she should program the Juggernaut to do once it finished its internal affairs. <em>If it's powerful enough, perhaps I could nominate it to be the Sword if there're no suitable Digimon candidates. We never specified if any of the Line had to be a Digimon…</em></p><p>That was still a while to go. Her job wasn't finished. Hers began where Nagamora's ended, the two complimenting each other. Just as it had been back home, back when they could be themselves.</p><p>Kincaid took the emergency stairs. As she quickly descended, she toyed with the Digivice, turning it over in her palm. To tell the truth, she was surprised at the Digivice's appearance: oblong, a silvery-white with red trimming. She'd only seen a real Digivice once before this and it hadn't looked anything like the one nestled in her pocket. Kaminmon had said it was apparently called a "D-Arc".</p><p><em>The humans probably learned from their mistakes. Maybe some sort of modification</em>. That was the only way she could explain it. It wasn't surprising they improved it. Obviously, they didn't want a repeat of what happened the first time they had discovered the existence of other worlds.</p><p>
  <em>Last time it was seven. And now it's three.  At least there's less of the rats this time.<br/></em>
</p><p>Again, Kincaid pushed open the door, closing it carefully behind her to it wouldn't echo. She didn't want to risk the chances of someone hearing her. She quickly crossed the corridor to the welded steel doors, shifting as she moved. A moment of delay, and she easily slid through, now on the other side of the doors. There wasn't any pause to regain her bearings – she made straight for the hulk of the Juggernaut as she melded into her true form, her furred tail swishing behind her. Her silver eyes bulged, large as plates.</p><p>The lights closest to the huge machine flickered in recognition as she approached.</p><p>"How's the new system, Juggernaut?"</p><p>No answer, save a satisfied creak from the cabinets surrounding the huge metal dome. This earned a laugh from Kincaid: she definitely could sense the change within the computer. <em>My baby's growing up</em>.</p><p>"Good," a little surprising the Juggernaut was becoming more lifelike by the day, but she continued, "By the way, I have something for you."</p><p>An almost curious break in the general hum of machinery.</p><p>"Here." Kincaid crossed the threshold, stepping over the large cables scattered all over the floor. She weaved around the multi-colored cabinets, coming to a stop before the Juggernaut. She was completely dwarfed by its bulk (it didn't help she shrunk a few feet when she resumed her original form), but she refused to allow herself to be intimidated. <em>No, </em>I'm<em> the one holding the reins here – I created it. </em>She leaned forward and knocked on the hull of the Juggernaut. "But you need to open up for me."</p><p>There was a deliberating pause. Kincaid started to frown, and her voice was suddenly low and commanding:</p><p>"Now<em>.</em>"</p><p>There was no further delay as the Juggernaut obeyed its creator. Seams suddenly became clear in the plating and thick jets of white steam shot out from the opening cracks. Even though it was starting to resemble a living creature more and more, it still had to follow her orders. <em>Besides, it only hesitated because it was looking out for its own well-being.</em> She reasoned. <em>It's only following the cautionary protocol I programmed into it.</em></p><p>Kincaid stepped forward, ignoring the tendrils of mist still curling around her small round ears and gloved paws. No cables sought to sink themselves into her any longer. They now collected densely in one area, shifting and creaking as they snaked over each other over the bulging mass.</p><p>"Your personality matrix," she ordered.</p><p>Another hiss from the Juggernaut, but it didn't make any motions to rebel against the command. The coils and segmented cables began to unwrap, pulling aside as the center of the mass was pushed forward. They pulled away until the shining surface of the capsule was revealed. Dozens of wires, thick and thin, had attached themselves to the exposed arms and body – three had sunk into the boy's neck, pulsing, while a larger one was planted comfortably into his side. The smaller cables weaved, agitated, in the air. It didn't like being exposed like this.</p><p>Kincaid leaned in. Since she was down here, she might as well check up on the boy's physical condition. If there was something wrong with the procedure, she'd need to be able to address the problem quickly.</p><p>Reaching out with a furred arm, she lifted the helmet off his head, pushing it backward and careful not to detach the wires curled from the back of the gear to his neck. A blank face stared, unseeing, over her shoulder, the human's eyes glassy, with a glazed look to them. She checked his pulse. A steady, strong beat. Satisfied by this, Kincaid waved her hand in front of his pale face. No reaction. She snapped her fingers in front of his eyes: <em>this</em> earned a slightest reaction, though it was delayed by several long seconds<em>. </em>His pupils didn't dilate or contract. <em><br/></em></p><p>Kincaid reached out and replaced the helmet, her fingers running briefly over the six jewel-like half-orbs. Everything looked good as she lowered the metal back onto the boy's head. The general sense of expectancy that hung in the air grew as she reached into her pocket and held out the red D-Arc toward the open machine.</p><p>"Take this," she said, fingers uncurling so the Digivice was nestled in her palm. "I'll be coming down later to upload your new orders."</p><p>There was a rustling creak as glittering wires stretched out toward her hand. They hovered momentarily about the D-Arc, weaving about only a few centimeters away as if fascinated. Sniffing it out. A click as one adventurous coil darted in and touched the surface. A moment's touch and than it was gone, but the change the D-Arc underwent at its contact was startling.</p><p>It grew light in Kincaid's hand. The red vanished when the wire touched the D-Arc and now the Digivice was devoid of any color, the blood red exchanged for a more neutral white. The coils stretched out and wrapped around the offering, lifting it and withdrawing back into the Juggernaut. Another jet of steam from the beastly machine and it was once again silent, though there was now a more <em>sated</em> feel to the air.</p><p>It was pleased with the D-Arc. Well, as pleased as artificial intelligence could feel, at any rate.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Conversations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The conversations between a supercomputer and its boy.</p><p>Yamaki and Reika steal some time away from Hypnos, reflecting on what they think of each other.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.</p><p><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p><strong>Bold</strong> for the Juggernaut's "voice".</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Chapter 6 - Conversations)</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>It's quiet tonight.</em>
</p><p>No sign of any Wild Ones, nothing out of the ordinary and no random outbreaks of troubleshooting. No broken parts, no stalled computers, no whining technicians…nothing.</p><p>Peaceful, almost.</p><p>Probably why Yamaki was suddenly aware of the fact his ass was absolutely killing him. He leaned back in his chair, setting the his down on the terminal's dark console.</p><p>Kei left long ago, leaving Kincaid and Reika manning the high-rise chairs now. Yamaki stifled a yawn, stretching out his cramped legs. His lower back twinged, protesting. Sure, he was dedicated, but he wasn't an insomniac; he was going to need some sleep if he was to be ready for tomorrow's meeting. Yamaki removed his sunglasses, rubbing at his temple in exasperation. It was typical for Nagamora to want a conference at 5 AM. <em>Swear that he does this on purpose. Trying to catch me with my pants down</em>. Another yawn. <em>Why doesn't this surprise me?</em></p><p>Typical of the man, now that he thought of it.</p><p>He glanced up. Kincaid was bustling with almost inhuman energy, her fingers flying around the keyboard. Reika, on the other hand, was beginning to show signs of fatigue.</p><p>Yamaki pushed himself out of his chair. He wasn't having a good week and he definitely wasn't looking forward to tomorrow. With luck, he wouldn't bungle the meeting or mention anything he deemed classified. <em>I'll do worse if I don't get rid of my own stress</em>, he thought grimly, replacing his sunglasses. So he needed to relax in order to be prepared. With that decided, he called up to the two women in the high-rise chair.</p><p>"Reika!"</p><p>The tech looked down, pushing up the goggles away from her eyes as she leaned over the terminal. "Sir?"</p><p>"Your shift's up," Yamaki said. To all others, these three words meant nothing, just a simple reminder, but Reika nodded. Reika began lowering her seat, unconsciously running her hands through her hair. Yamaki glanced from from Reika to Kincaid. "Kinoko Sekai will be coming down – when she does, I want you to run an errand for me. There're some files I want you to copy onto a flash drive – they're called Firewall-09GX. I expect the flash drive on my desk tomorrow morning."</p><p>"Yes sir!"</p><p>Yamaki turned to Reika. He had no trouble reading her body language. She would use him the same way he would use her, of course – as a stress reliever, nothing more. "Lovers" would be pushing it, wouldn't it? <em>More like business associates.</em> He watched as Reika approached, her reflective goggles hanging in her fingers. Sure, she was pretty, beautiful even – she was a model as well, wasn't she? – but Yamaki wasn't interested in getting to know her, and he supposed she felt the same way.</p><p>Reika fell in step next to him as the two left the deck, heading toward the elevators. The overnight employees passing by made no attempts to ask questions. It was common to see the two leaving at the same time, or in each other's company. If they suspected anything, they wisely kept it to themselves.</p><p>Reika made no attempt to converse with her boss during the elevator ride down, although he could feel her dark eyes boring into the back of his head. She was a sharp woman and she already knew enough about him to make him feel mildly uncomfortable. Yamaki briefly wondered why he put up with her, why he put up with the prying questions in the dark, the fact that sometimes he got the impression she was genuinely interested in what he had to say.</p><p>Maybe it was because of that. Because she gave as good as he could. He wasn't even sure if he could fire her.<em><br/></em></p><p>The elevator soon arrived at the lobby. It was then Reika broke the silence:</p><p>"Your car?"</p><p>"My car. When does your shift start tomorrow?" Yamaki asked, ignoring the stares of a roaming security guard.</p><p>"Eight," came the curt reply.</p><p>"Fine."</p><p>And that was the end of the conversation. No further words were exchanged between them until they reached the parking lot.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kaminmon made his way across the roof tops, cursing the way the rain made the tiles slippery, cursing the way the damp gravel gave way under him, and generally cursing everything that came to mind about this damn city.</p><p>The Council was right. Humans really did live in ultra-Hives!</p><p>He had only been here for a few days and already he hated it. The way the lights sparkled, dazzling the eye, the way the breeze whipped its way between the skyscrapers, the way the streets in the day were crowded with those miserable fleshlings, those <em>humans. </em>The more he saw of them, the more he thought they had it coming. The Real World really did have sawrms of the creatures, just like the Council email blasts said they did.<em><br/></em></p><p>The Digimon who he was supposed to hunt out didn't associate with any humans, according to his Mistress. Kaminmon had a general idea where his target could be found, but it was still a long way to go. More than half way across the city, in fact. He estimated it would probably be a few hours before he'd even be close, and then he'd have the personal enjoyment of trying to find a Digimon who probably didn't <em>want</em> to be found.</p><p>He would be patient. Even if he thought he'd go cross-eyed with anger at this forsaken place.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The Juggernaut was pleased with something.</p><p>Takato could <em>feel</em> the satisfaction, almost imagined it was a tangible thing he could touch. Weird. After all, hadn't the computer told him it was incapable of feelings? Then again, that was days ago, and from what he gathered, the Juggernaut was reading him like a book and <em>learning</em>. So maybe it was possible.</p><p>Still, he had to wonder what it was that pleased the Juggernaut. Was it something good…well, good for the both of them? The Tamer couldn't really say. His words were swallowed up in the black space, no echo bouncing back and he couldn't really go anywhere because everything looked exactly the same. </p><p>Takato closed his eyes, still seeing those colored lines shifting in his vision, and let his hands hang at his side. The irritating buzzing bothering him ever since he'd been kidnapped grew fainter and he found it easier to think. When he did, the thoughts were painful – plans to escape, worry about his family, homesickness, concern about his friends, confusion – and to make matters even <em>more</em> pleasant, he was starting to feel the first pangs of loneliness. He didn't like the feeling of being completely by himself, with no one around him.</p><p>It was hours since he talked at all.</p><p>Would his friends even try to find him? Juri probably wouldn't, and neither would Kenta – no, Kenta would rather send someone else to take care of his work. <em>What about Hirokazu?</em> A burst of cynical laughter. Too busy trying to buy a card deck good enough to beat Ruki, probably. Besides, he was too wrapped up in hanging around with Kenta anyway. Typical of them to ignore Takato and exclude him. Ruki probably wouldn't even notice he was gone, so no surprise there. Guilmon was probably getting hungry, but then again, he was always hungry, so what else was new?</p><p><em>And Jenrya?</em> A moment of hesitation. Jenrya probably would notice Takato was missing, maybe even go out and look for him for who knew how long. The young Tamer felt the teeth of shame nip at him.<em><br/></em></p><p>
  <em>Wonder how long he's going to look before he decides it's useless?</em>
</p><p>Takato knew his friend didn't kid himself about anything, and he wouldn't do something if it was obvious it was pointless. Smart guy like that. <em>So what would that be? A few days? A week, at most?</em> His loyalty starting to fade and he wondered why he'd thought Jenrya could be excluded from the others in the first place. <em>It's all their fault for doing nothing.</em> Takato realized in smoldering anger. And if Jenrya <em>had</em> been looking, obviously he hadn't been looking hard enough! The anger drained away, leaving Takato feeling ashamed.</p><p>
  <em>...Why am I thinking like this? This isn't me!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It's just my temper. Anyone would be testy being in this position.</em>
</p><p>In the passing hours, his temper swung wildly, going from feeling betrayed to feeling like he was going to burst into tears. He personally couldn't think of a solid reason for this, other than that it probably had something to do with the Juggernaut.</p><p>
  <strong>You appear to be holding up very well.</strong>
</p><p>Takato didn't open his eyes – there was nothing to see – and at first he didn't answer, though he wondered why the Juggernaut was talking to him again. Five hours hadn't passed. At least, he was pretty sure that much time hadn't elapsed.</p><p><strong>It hasn't. </strong>The Juggernaut answered. <strong>Your sense of the passage of time is accurate.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Then how come you're speaking to me again?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Another part of me monitors your current mental output. I am merely…what do you call it? When one interacts with another on a purely personal basis, with output exchanged between one another…?</strong>
</p><p><em>Starting a conversation?</em> Takato's eyes opened wide at this, surprised. <em>This</em> was new.</p><p><strong> Yes. Starting a conversation.</strong> <strong>Currently, I an unable to take an avatar in this plane – I will soon, to make communication less difficult between us – but I will answer your questions now, as best to my ability.</strong></p><p>Takato glanced around the black space. He'd had about a million things to ask, hundreds, thousands of questions that had been swirling about in his mind. But now his brain decided to go blank on him. Helpful. The young Tamer looked about, trying to find something that might jog his memory back into wakefulness.</p><p>
  <strong>There is no pressure. Take as much time as you require.</strong>
</p><p>Time. Well, there was a question, though it was probably a stupid one. <em>Hey, how old are you?</em></p><p><strong>How old am I?</strong> There was an imitation of a thoughtful pause. <strong>Specify.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Huh? </em>
  <em>It's pretty straightforward.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> Incorrect. Do you refer to the day construction on me began or when my awareness program was initiated?</strong>
</p><p>Takato blinked. <em>Uh…when was your…um…program started?</em></p><p>
  <strong>Approximately thirteen years.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Well, what about your construction?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Five months, three days, fourteen hours and fifty-two minutes.</strong>
</p><p>Now how was <em>that</em> possible? Takato knew he was only a kid, but anyone could see the problems with this – there was no way you could be five months and thirteen years old at the same time! Apparently, the Juggernaut sensed his bewilderment, speaking up before there were any more questions:</p><p>
  <strong>Perhaps this requires further explanation. Work on me first started approximately five months ago, by the humans here, led by my creator. The first piece of me that was completed were my data banks. Therefore my construction age is not exactly accurate, because the oldest file I possess dates back to the very minute my banks were activated. However, my awareness program is linked to yours, and therefore I have a "memory" that can go back thirteen years ago, though mine can recall the moment of living birth, unlike yours. So, in a way, I am both as old as you, yet I am also younger. </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Do you understand now?</strong>
</p><p>Takato thought he did. So, "physically", the Juggernaut was younger, but "mentally" (or digitally, or whatever), it was as old as him because of that link between them. <em>Okay, I can understand that.</em> Put like that it wasn't so complicated, but of course the Juggernaut had to go rambling off, as usual -</p><p><strong> - I am merely supplying additional information to support my answer</strong>. The machine interjected, almost in mild protest.</p><p><em>Yeah, well, you keep doing that, and you start confusing people.</em> Takato answered.</p><p>
  <strong>Noted. Filed away for reference, companion system.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Do you have any other questions?</strong>
</p><p>Takato knew he did, but now that he was actually talking to the Juggernaut, they all flooded back and he wasn't sure which one he should ask. It was starting to get a little easier to accept the computer as a sentient being, and even less difficult to forget he wasn't <em>really</em> having a conversation. The Juggernaut seemed to be genuinely interested in answering his questions. It was a change from the background check things, which were either boring or painful. The Tamer made a motion to snap his fingers, remembering something. He'd been wondering earlier what it had been that'd been making the Juggernaut feel so pleased.</p><p>Or whatever it felt in place of emotions.</p><p>
  <strong>Two questions. </strong>
  <strong>To answer the second one: I now can simulate a very limited range of emotions, because our systems are further interlocking. But while you have no control over yours, I do. I can pick at will the appropriate emotion for the occasion. I was merely…practicing then.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Why?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Because it was a situation where I knew I should feel pleased.</strong>
</p><p>Did these conversations have to be difficult? <em>What I meant was, </em>what<em> was it that made you feel that way?</em></p><p>
  <strong>I received a gift.</strong>
</p><p>Takato felt his eyebrows shoot up. Somehow, that was the last thing the young boy had been thinking.<em> A </em>gift<em>?</em></p><p><strong> A gift.</strong> The Juggernaut agreed. From my creator. <strong>A suitable reason to be pleased, I think. Though I believe it technically belongs to you…</strong></p><p>What?</p><p>
  <strong>Your Digivice.</strong>
</p><p>Takato glanced around wildly, almost expecting to see his D-Arc.</p><p><strong> It is not here, companion system. You forget where you are. Your "D-Arc" is safe. In fact, it is sitting in your physical lap, so there is nothing to concern yourself with</strong>. The Juggernaut reassured him. <strong>You will feel it when I finish the background checks.</strong></p><p>The Juggernaut fell silent, awaiting his next question. Takato mulled this new development over. So he had his D-Arc with him. The young Tamer wasn't completely sure how much power the device had in it, but maybe he could use it to escape? Or maybe sic Growlmon on the Juggernaut so he could get out?</p><p><strong>It would be impossible to "sic" Growlmon on me, companion system. Just as it would be impossible to "sic" him on yourself. You will find your D-Arc will not respond to only your command.</strong> The Juggernaut commented mildly. <strong>It will only recognize you if our signals are joined.</strong></p><p><em>What did you do to it?</em> Takato demanded.</p><p>
  <strong>I have done nothing. I merely touched it: your D-Arc did the rest. Now, do you have anything else to ask?</strong>
</p><p>Takato made a face as if he'd tasted something bitter. So he could forget about the D-Arc; leaving him exactly where he'd started. <em>I might as well forget about it</em>, Takato realized wearily. He put the news of his D-Arc to the back of his mind, deciding to focus on asking questions. He groped about for something to ask and blurted the first thing that came to mind<em>. You said you could appear here as an avatar…where is </em>here<em>? Is this also in my head?</em></p><p>
  <strong>No. Only the background checks are taken from your memory. Your subconscious self I have transferred momentarily. This is a small section of the digital plane.</strong>
</p><p>The digital plane?</p><p><strong>The area between the Digital World and the Real World. Only computers with my caliber can make much use of this plane, although some Digimon are able to make the transition through this area</strong>, answered the Juggernaut. <strong>If it will make it any easier to explain, think of the Digital World and the Real World as two large masses of land, separated by a chasm. This chasm is vast and has no measurable depth. The only way to cross between the Digital and the Real is to go over the chasm through tears in both their realities – bridges, if you need visualization, although that is a crude way of describing it.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Oh…I thought this was the Digital World.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>It is not. No Digimon can survive long here, and so they travel as quickly as they can from one side to the other. Not much is known of the space between the Digital and Real Worlds, and even I am limited in my abilities here, as my programming has little relevant information regarding this space. However, my work can be completed quickly here, and you seem to have no difficulty in this plane.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>What about what you said earlier, about appearing here as an avatar?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> Currently, I possess the ability to choose a form for myself based on your memories. However, in the bonding between companion systems, I have not reached the point where I can create an image to use here. That in itself will take several more hours. For that, I will need to borrow fragments of your memory in order to do so.</strong>
</p><p>Takato decided he had a reason to be suspicious. Was this going to mess up his memory or anything?</p><p>
  <strong> No. I will merely copy from you what I need. And after that, I will need to locate the source I will take my image from, in order to accurately imitate the mannerisms. I have enough influence that I can use the city's network freely for surveillance.<br/></strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Oh.</em>
</p><p>There was an awkward silence. Takato fidgeted. He couldn't think of anything else to ask. Not anything worthwhile, at any rate. After a long pause, the Juggernaut spoke up again:</p><p>
  <strong>Perhaps I should ask you some questions.</strong>
</p><p>Takato started to give his agreement, when he realized something that almost made him do a double take. <em>Wait a minute, but wouldn't you already know the answers?</em> He almost forgotten the machine could read his thoughts.</p><p><strong>Yes, I would already know what your answer but you could pretend I do not.</strong> The Juggernaut replied. <strong>This is a conversation, after all. You may assume I know little about you. Think of it like a game of Make-Believe, if it helps you.</strong></p><p><em>…Okay…</em>Takato dubiously agreed.</p><p><strong> I shall start, then.</strong> A pause, almost if the Juggernaut was thinking. <strong>You are an only child, correct?</strong></p><p>
  <em>Uh huh.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>What do your parents do for a living?</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>They work in a bakery.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>What is it like, to have parents?</strong>
</p><p>Takato shrugged. Did he hear an almost wistful tone in that question? It was hard to tell – after all, he was dealing with a machine here. <em>It's okay, I guess. Mom's a good cook, and Dad's funny. They always tuck me in at night, and make me study all the time and tell me what to do…</em></p><p>
  <strong>Do they "love" you?</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> I guess so.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>How old are they? They must be in their mid-thirties.</strong>
</p><p>Takato nodded.</p><p>
  <strong>They will not live long.</strong>
</p><p>Takato fought to bite his tongue. He'd spent enough time in the Juggernaut's strange company that he was starting to get used to the tactless remarks it made. He was sure what it said had a point – Takato didn't think it could be menacing – and it probably didn't speak just to showboat its abilities. After all, didn't it say that it couldn't lie? Still, he had to remember they were talking about <em>his</em> parents here! <em>What do you mean?</em></p><p>
  <strong>Exactly what I said. If they are in their thirties, then I would estimate they would live only forty more years. That is not very long.</strong>
</p><p><em>It's long to me</em>! He countered.</p><p><strong>If you had contact with the outside world, yes; it would be long. But you forget you are in my presence, and therefore time has little effect on you or I. </strong>The Juggernaut replied. <strong>You will not age when you are with me. After we are linked completely, you will easily outlive your friends and family.</strong></p><p><em>What makes you think I'll be here long enough to see that happen, assuming you're telling the truth?</em> Takato didn't think he would automatically accept the Juggernaut because it might have a few tricks up its sleeve. Not that it had any sleeves. But he started to think something he did (or thought) was prompting the probing questions, considering how the Juggernaut acted so objectively.</p><p><strong>Think what you will. Perhaps you will think differently in a few days concerning my capacities.</strong> The Juggernaut said. <strong> Your friends know you from only what their eyes can tell them. I know everything regarding you, how you think and what you desire. In almost every aspect we are different, and I am obviously the superior in capabilities. Yet, you chose to put your trust in <em>them</em>, inferior as they are. It is their perspective you still limit yourself to, not mine. Not yet.</strong></p><p><em> So? What, you're getting jealous or something?</em> The young Tamer asked. <em>Didn't think you were the type.</em></p><p><strong>Jealous? Hardly. It is merely puzzling to me.</strong> The Juggernaut answered with the ghost of imitated affection. <strong>As it is puzzling how one can "love" another. According to how humans think of such a concept, I find it bewildering. Inconsistent.</strong> A pause. <strong>But that is not an important matter</strong>. <strong>What is…</strong>it trailed off.</p><p>Takato jumped slightly as he felt something light touch his shoulder, almost experimentally. The boy whirled around, still floating in the black space and glancing wildly. Nothing, nothing except the same digital lines he was getting to know so well. No one behind him, which meant…</p><p>
  <strong>My power here is already rapidly growing by being with you. Do you see now? It's beginning.</strong>
</p><p>Another feathery touch, a whisper against his wrist. Takato kept his mouth shut, although the ghostly contact felt awfully familiar. If he closed his eyes (which he did), he could almost imagine his mom standing behind his back and looking over his shoulder. A nearly inaudible sigh escaped his lips as he leaned back. Drifted a little. He'd been stubbornly keeping his thoughts away from what the Juggernaut had told him, had asked him earlier, and had revealed to him in the past few days in its background checks while he had tried to hide behind skeptical and superficial questions. Yet he knew he couldn't shy away forever and it was impossible to bar his mind from what was said, which made more and more sense, more than <em>he</em> certainly wanted to admit…</p><p><em>A game?</em> He supposed it could be a game. <em>Make Believe?</em> He was still a kid, he still played games…and it would be so <em>easy</em> to pretend, to make believe that things were otherwise…</p><p>
  <strong>A giant game. That is all it is. All it ever was…</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> …Since everything began seven years ago.</strong>
</p><p>A faint breath ruffled his brown hair, the motion still clumsy for lack of practice. Almost like his dad this time, tousling his hai; his dad hadn't done that in <em>years</em>. If he didn't know better, Takato could almost believe the clock was getting pushed back, like he was once more a little kid. That he didn't have loads of homework or that pile of responsibilities that just grew as he got older, that his parents always had time for him.</p><p><strong>Time is beyond our reach. I can imitate what your memory can recall. With practice, I will be indistinguishable from the real thing. A superior replacement. </strong>The Juggernaut feigned a murmuring, comforting tone.<strong> It is pointless to concern yourself with such things.</strong></p><p>What about his friends and family? They were worried about him; they had to be.</p><p><strong>And how long will they search for you? Weeks? Months?</strong> Another experimentally touch grazed his nose and tweaked at him; he wrinkled it in response. <strong>Not forever. It is reasonable to assume at some point they will give up hope, Takato. And then what will you do? Will it matter if you are eventually forgotten?</strong></p><p>Takato reluctantly shook his head. It wouldn't matter. He had heard all those stories about kids disappearing – after a while, the posters inquiring about the missing kids vanished from the subway walls, and the students at school eventually stopped talking about it and moved on to other, more recent and "interesting" things.<em> Is that how it would be with me? Am </em>I<em> going to end up just like that, old news? </em></p><p>It was starting to get difficult to figure out time here. Had he been here for hours? A few days? After a while, it just sort of blended together into a jumbled, garbled mess. It was easier not to think about it.</p><p>
  <strong>Yes. Time is not your concern. Do not think of your family and friends – they do not truly know you. I would think it should benefit you to forget them.</strong>
</p><p>He didn't think he could, even if he had wanted to. Jenrya, always there, reliant and thinking with a clear head. Guilmon, his absolutely bestest best friend, sometimes clueless, but still the one he could go to when he needed some cheering up. His mom and dad, always there to help him with homework and make him those special bread rolls that tasted so good, his mom coming in every night to tuck him in. Ruki, always making some snide remark, yet managing to help out if he needed it. How could he forget <em>them</em>, wipe them from his memory?</p><p>
  <strong>They all have judged you. No one came. What does that say?</strong>
</p><p>The Juggernaut didn't wait for an answer.</p><p><strong> It does not matter. They are not here but I am. And in the end, all that will be left will be you and I.</strong> Ghostly fingers gently pushed Takato away, leaving the boy to float slowly forward. <strong>Perhaps you should think this over for a while before we engage in another one of these "conversations".</strong></p><p><em>You're leaving?</em> Takato asked. Of course, he knew the Juggernaut wasn't really leaving, but it would be silent and unresponsive to him, which pretty much amounted to the same thing. He would be alone. And back where he started until the computer returned to him.</p><p>
  <strong>I must finish my work now, which is going to require most of my attention.</strong>
</p><p><em> …When…</em>Takato felt badly he was asking this - like he was giving into some sort of compromise - but he continued anyway. <em>When…when will you be done?</em></p><p>
  <strong>In an hour. You should be informed there is going to be another background check after that.</strong>
</p><p>Takato digested this. He was starting to get used to the checks and the prospect of one wasn't as terrible as he originally thought not too long ago. Better that then the loneliness. An hour absolutely seemed like a lifetime to him in the digital plane. Takato didn't know just what he was going to do to occupy himself until then. Apparently he didn't need to eat or drink, which was a minor curiosity, but not something he was dying know the reason for. Besides that, there altogether wasn't that much to do.</p><p>And if he had to stare at those digital lines for even ten more minutes, Takato swore he was going to go crazy.</p><p>Or something, if he wasn't already crazy for actually looking forward to another conversation with the Juggernaut.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>His eyes started to hurt again.</p><p>Yamaki couldn't tell why. The phantom pains were returning (the last time he felt them ache like this had been around two years ago) and now they bugged the hell out of him. <em>It's been four years</em>. Yamaki growled . Even the doctors said he should have fully recovered by now. They had been puzzled about his condition, but what could he tell them? They wouldn't believe him anyway.</p><p>His mouth tightened imperceptibly. He was <em>not</em> going to start thinking of that incident again.</p><p>Not that nightmare…</p><p>If he couldn't erase it from his mind's memory, then he could chose to simply not think about it. Though that was easier said than done some days.</p><p>The throbbing became more insistent and stinging, enough Yamaki had to pull one hand from the wheel to push his sunglasses up in order to rub at his eyes.</p><p>"Something wrong?"</p><p>Yamaki flicked a glance at his passenger. Reika fixed him with a cool stare. He looked away, fixing his gaze on the dark road ahead. "No. Just something caught in my eye." His tone made it clear it wasn't a subject to be pursued.</p><p>Reika shrugged. She clearly didn't buy his excuse. He knew he wouldn't have bought it if they'd switched places. The car made its way down empty streets, passing under the pale cones of light spilling from out the street lights. Next to him, Reika sat in the passenger's seat, her long violet hair pulled back in a loose ponytail as she stared out the window at the passing houses and apartments.</p><p>They were only a few blocks from his apartment complex when Reika spoke up, still gazing into her reflection in the window.</p><p>"We're keeping this quick, right?"</p><p>Yamaki nodded, "No foreplay. Not tonight."</p><p>"Fine by me. I'm not in the mood for it."</p><p>"Neither am I," He eyed the red light as the car idled at the intersection. "I'll give you the keys to my apartment. You know what floor it is."</p><p>"What about you?"</p><p>"There's something I need to check up on." Yamaki said coolly. "It'll only take fifteen minutes."</p><p>Reika asked no more questions as the car swung left, turning onto a side street. Yamaki drove on, lost in thought. <em>Is it still standing?</em> It had been nearly three years since he last saw the building, after all, and he knew the people who lived there had long since moved away, at least two years earlier. His memories of the place were etched deeply into his memory, how it had been before <em>they</em> moved away.</p><p>
  <em> And who was to blame for that?</em>
</p><p>The apartment complex came into sight, the towering building reaching up into the midnight sky. For the most part, its windows were dark, though he could see one or two were lit. It was pretty late and most of the tenants had already gone to sleep. Yamaki pulled up to the sidewalk. Reika unbuckled herself and, opening the door, the young woman slid gracefully out of the car. Yamaki waited until she disappeared into the building before starting up the car again and easing out of the parking lot.</p><p>The house he was going to visit was only a ten minute drive away, which was why he continued to pay rent at this particular apartment in the first place. He supposed he could've bought the house when it had been abandoned, but it would probably hurt too much to wake and eat and sleep there. Better he just stay away, unless it was for brief visits like this one. Yamaki reached up and removed his sunglasses.</p><p>It was only another reminder of his past failures.</p><p>He remembered driving down this very same street, years ago. Of course, back then it hadn't had so many houses nestled against each other. And the road had been a lot more crowded then: he saw very few cars parked next to the sidewalks now.</p><p>Yamaki eased off the gas. The trees whispered overhead in the midnight's gentle breeze as he finally pulled to a stop. For a moment, he remained seated where he was, lifting his head to regard the house he stopped in front of. <em>It hasn't changed. Looks just as dead as it did the last time I was here</em>.</p><p>Strangely enough, the house hadn't been purchased like he suspected. A five-foot wall surrounded the perimeter of the lot, long overgrown with climbing weeds. The trees were wild, their shaggy tops hanging over the wall. Dry leaves scuttled about the sidewalk and danced against the pavement; he could see the gate had been left partially opened, which made him frown as a thought hit him. <em>Don't tell me vandals hit this place.</em> Yamaki got out from the car, shutting the door behind him with a bang and silently surveyed the area, his lips tightening into a thin line. It made him fume to think a bunch of brats would trespass and deface the lot. What made him even more irritated was the fact his cousins had turned a blind eye to what was happening in their own neighborhood.</p><p>
  <em>If they even live around here still.</em>
</p><p>As far as he knew, most of his family – including his parents – left Tokyo recently. They packed up and left without so much as a word of goodbye. They hadn't exchanged words since nearly half a decade ago.</p><p>Yamaki approached the derelict lot, his shoes crunching through the dry leaves on the path to the gate. Years ago, the walkway would've been swept clean. Despite his attempts to clean the mess up last time, it was piling up once again. Regretfully, he knew he wasn't going to have enough time to deal with it today. In fact, he knew his work was going to keep him busy for quite a while and that he probably wouldn't have enough time to return for several months, even though he promised himself to visit more often.</p><p>As he entered the lot, Yamaki glanced about the area. The trees were whispering each other as their branches rustled and creaked against each other in the strengthening wind. Yamaki didn't hesitate long to listen, instead slowly heading toward the dark house.</p><p>As he came upon the dirt-covered threshold, he halted at the door, glancing at the lot behind him. It was depressing, almost painfully so, to see the house liked this. Even more so when he thought of the people who used to lived here.</p><p>
  <em> I wonder if everything would've happened if I hadn't been there? Would she still be alive? If I hadn't come back to Tokyo, would this house still be occupied?</em>
</p><p>He knew part of the fault (most of it?) was his – he was unwilling to put his faith where it should've been and he hadn't then had the resources to combat the digital threat that even then, so long ago, began to surface. It wouldn't have mattered so much if he had been the casualty. <em>But instead…</em></p><p>Yamaki trailed off, leaning on the frame of doorway. His eyes started to burn, which wasn't a good thing. Tears would irritate still sensitive wounds. Besides, he hadn't cried since his injury and he hadn't cried since he first received the news.</p><p>He certainly wasn't going to start now.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Takato sat quietly against the wall of the jungle gym, looking around. This background check was a little different than what he was getting used to and he wasn't sure what to think of it.</p><p>To start things off, the Juggernaut hadn't gotten immediately to work. Instead, it told him to wait and that it would be with him momentarily. That was fifteen minutes ago. Not that he had a problem with sitting around doing nothing. At least this place was familiar, and he supposed anything was better (and less boring) than that digital plane waiting room. But it irritated him the Juggernaut had been all uppity earlier about being efficient and saying they must cooperate and act quickly to complete its task, only for the computer to disappear on him.</p><p>He thought he was getting a hang of how things were handled here, but now he was put on hold. Apparently. Or whatever term could be applied to this. Guess he should make the best of where he was: for one thing, it was nice to listen to the background noises of the park, just sit there and <em>listen</em>. Sparrows chirped back and forth to each other. He couldn't hear any cars or any people, for that matter. In the distance, that same dog was barking. <em>It's getting more and more detailed here each time.</em> The first check was almost completely silent. And the scenery had been too bright, saturated, like there was some huge light bulb peeping through a filter.</p><p><em>Guess it really is learning.</em> He leaned forward, staring with a sudden interest at the floor. The Juggernaut had it. Right down to the little, itty bitty brown flecks embedded in the concrete.</p><p>
  <strong>Enjoying yourself?</strong>
</p><p>Takato sat up sharply, for no reason feeling embarrassed of himself. Guiltily he sat back against the wall. There was a scrabbling sound outside of the jungle gym.</p><p>
  <strong> I am coming in.</strong>
</p><p>A gray head appeared for a moment, followed by a pair of paws. Takato couldn't help staring in fascination as what appeared to be the top half of a lean dog popped over the ledge, trying to push itself over the floor and not quite making it. The gray shoulder muscles bunched and twisted as the animal fought to get onto the next level. After a few minutes, Takato finally leaned forward.</p><p>"Um…do you need any help?"</p><p><strong>Yes.</strong> The Juggernaut answered after a pregnant pause.<strong> It appears this body is not meant for this type of strain.</strong></p><p>Takato almost laughed, but thought better of it, instead crawling over on his hands and knees until he was closer to the Juggernaut's current avatar. He placed his hands on the paws, hesitating. If he tried to pull the doggy up, wouldn't he risk injuring the animal? Maybe this wasn't such a good idea: he didn't really like the idea of maybe breaking a bone or dislocating a limb.</p><p>
  <strong>I will be fine. Help me.</strong>
</p><p>With a dubious expression, Takato's fingers closed around the Juggernaut's paws and he sat backward, pulling hard as he could. Between his heaving and the dog's efforts, the machine's avatar managed to scramble up onto the jungle gym's floor. Takato settled back to give the Juggernaut some breathing space, his hands resting on his knees as he stared.</p><p>Considering the forms the Juggernaut picked in the past, this was probably one of the nicest. It was easily the most lifelike. This time it was a beautiful greyhound, sleek, with closely cropped silver fur he suddenly had an urge to pass his hand over. He managed to resist the temptation, although he was dying to know if dog was as soft as it looked. The greyhound padded a few feet into the tiny room, its claws clicking almost inaudibly against concrete as it circled about. It finally settled down in the warmth of the mid-noon sunlight, the light spilling through the small hole cut in the jungle gym and across the floor, turning its coat into molten silver.</p><p>The greyhound's head swiveled around to fix its eyes on the Tamer, noticing his fascinated stare. <strong>Is this a suitable avatar, companion system? More appropriate, I think.</strong> The dog bared its teeth in a fake yawn.</p><p><em>Where were you?</em> Takato wondered. His eyes remained glued on the greyhound; he was unable to tear them away.</p><p><strong>Some things required my immediate attention</strong>. The Juggernaut tilted its gray snout, the very motion fluid. It shook its head at the Tamer's unspoken question. For the time being, it was apparent the machine didn't feel it was something he needed to know at the moment and probably wasn't going to satisfy his curiosity any time in the near future. The animal began to pant, pretending to be overheated as it kept that slightly unnerving gaze on the young boy. <strong>We begin now</strong>.</p><p>Takato nodded half-heartedly, although he was far more interested in admiring the dog then sitting down for another lecture.</p><p>It seemed like it'd been forever since he'd seen another living thing.</p><p><strong> I have decided to use this session to address several things I think are important to reaching my projected goal.</strong> The Juggernaut began. <strong>The first issue I wish to address is the matter of your own behavior.</strong></p><p><em> What about it?</em> The young boy wondered. His attention, however, remained fixed on the beautiful animal, instead of on the computer's words.</p><p>
  <strong>It concerns obedience. I have been reviewing the information I have on file regarding you, and it seems you are lacking in this area. For example, you occasionally fail to obey the command of your parents. They tell you to do your homework, but you do not. Instead, you do something else, such as drawing. But when they ask if you are working hard, you say nothing. Not only do you disobey the order, but you also deviate from the truth by keeping silent.</strong>
</p><p>Takato failed to see how this was a supposedly "dangerous" flaw. It was just a harmless white lie, wasn't it?</p><p><strong>Let me explain, using myself as an example. I am a computer, therefore I possess none of these flaws. If I am given a command, I follow it. I do exactly what I am ordered. Because of this, I never fail. </strong>A reproaching look from the greyhound. <strong>It should be fairly obvious – even to you, Takato Matsuda – which is why I have chosen not to focus entirely on this defect. Even you should see this for what it is. If you do not obey all commands, you will fail. Always. When we merge, as one we must obey all commands given in order to accomplish the set goal. </strong></p><p>
  <strong>There can be no arguments, no doubts. There can be no "why" in our operations. Such things mean nothing to me and should mean nothing to you as well. "Why" is meaningless.</strong>
</p><p>During this lecture, Takato managed to scoot closer to the avatar. The Juggernaut didn't appear to notice, although its unblinking eyes were still fixed on him. He decided to pass on asking the question on the tip of his tongue, instead content to just sit there and take in the pretty animal up close. The Tamer was itching to smooth down the silver fur, to touch it just for a moment, but he reminded himself it probably wasn't a good idea. Still, he was tempted, and it was hard to keep his mouth clamped shut.</p><p><strong>I trust you understand this.</strong> The Juggernaut paused then, and the dog's slender head turned expectantly toward the entrance to the jungle gym. Takato's eyes automatically followed the greyhound's gaze – there was little reaction from the boy as he watched a carbon copy of himself clamber into the small room, lugging a shoebox of cards with him. The Tamer instinctively started to move aside as the other Takato set his box down on the concrete floor, but he stopped when the other boy practically sat down on top of his legs.</p><p>The other Takato went through him like a ghost.</p><p>Just a phantom from some fading memory. Takato glanced away from the "ghost", instead turning his eyes back to the Juggernaut's avatar for an explanation.</p><p>
  <strong>The latest occurrence of an act of disobedience. This occurred less than a week ago.</strong>
</p><p>That recent? How long had he been in the Juggernaut, anyway?</p><p><strong>Only a few days. But that is not relevant.</strong> The computer replied. <strong>When you came here, you told your mother you were going to Jenrya Lee's house to study for a math test. But you did not follow through with what you said. Just as you never did when you spent most of the night making pictures of Growlmon – you failed to comply with the order your mother gave you. You cannot afford to follow this pattern any longer. There is only failure if you continue to do so.</strong></p><p>
  <strong>D</strong>
  <strong>o you want to fail?</strong>
</p><p>He could almost hear the chagrin in his voice, "Well…no, but…"</p><p>
  <strong>You do recognize the need to fix this defect, correct? Although it is not difficult to correct this flaw, disobedience is listed – in my banks – as one of the most dangerous you possess.<br/></strong>
</p><p>The greyhound glanced at the ghostly image of the other Takato. The boy sifted through his deck, his red D-Arc sitting near his knee, and looking for something as he spread the cards laid out before him. Takato ignored the ghost hand passing through his thigh.<strong> Contrary to your belief, these are not accusations, Takato Matsuda.</strong></p><p>Takato started to protest he didn't think they were but he thought better of it. Once again, the Juggernaut saw through him. <em>Guess there's no point in getting huffy about it, then.</em></p><p><strong>Precisely</strong>.</p><p>It wasn't as painful to Takato to hear the ring of truth in the Juggernaut's words this time, though he now had to wonder what got him so riled up in the first place. Now that he'd been in the computer's company a little while longer, he began to be a bit more accepting, and it was becoming a mystery to him why he'd been acting so weirdly at the time.</p><p>It never occurred to him <em>he</em> might have changed since then.</p><p>Takato cradled his chin in one hand as he stared at the greyhound. Now that it was clear he understood what needed to be done, the Juggernaut would probably move on to other things. Hopefully it wouldn't be boring. He glanced at the other Takato: the boy was oblivious to their presence. Takato couldn't help feeling a faint sense of disgust at the other and he glanced away before the emotion could get stronger. How he could have ever been so carefree was beyond him.</p><p>
  <strong>Confirmation received that the companion system recognizes this imperfection.</strong>
</p><p>Takato shrugged, not really paying as much attention as he had been earlier: it wasn't a big surprise or anything and he guessed the computer was only following its programming. Besides, it was so much nicer to just admire the Juggernaut instead of being reminded of the memories that were now starting to get more and more hazy. The boy kept his eyes on the Juggernaut, ignoring the other Takato. <em>What now?</em></p><p>
  <strong>I decided it would do some good to brief you on the situation, as well as shed some light on the purpose of our merge.</strong>
</p><p>Although his interest wasn't really there, Takato nodded.</p><p><strong>As mentioned earlier, I, by myself, am unable to interact with the network of Tokyo, although I do have access to it.</strong> The Juggernaut began as it folded its gray paws onto one another.<strong> Our work will require this interaction for the storing of data and various forms of energy and is the reason for the merge. Currently, I have little data concerning the details – my creator has yet to upload that into my system – but in the future, we will be working with and sorting the energy that will soon be channeled us from the outside and…</strong></p><p>The machine continued to talk as time passed. It spoke of the programs which would be activated once they were one and what those programs would do. The contingencies in place. But Takato's interest faded quickly. His attention span dipped even lower at the minutes ticked by. The minutes began to stretch and as the Juggernaut got more and more technical, Takato got more and more bored. Maybe the two were inversely proportioned, he suddenly wondered. Like, the longer the computer talked, the shorter his attention span got.</p><p>
  <strong> …by absorbing all the mental programs and files into one "consciousness" and assimilating the companion system into the…</strong>
</p><p>Gosh, he was <em>bored</em>. He was "hearing" the words, yeah, but they weren't clicking in his head. He was fine with admiring the pretty doggy, although the temptation to pet it was growing.<em> I wonder if it's as soft as a chinchilla? </em>One of his friends used to have a chinchilla, before she moved away – it looked like a ridiculously cute mix between a squirrel and a rabbit, but to him, the best part had how fluffy it was. The gray-black fur had been the softest thing he ever touched.</p><p>
  <strong>…with the aid of an outside source, packets of data will be gathered and…</strong>
</p><p>All these thoughts about animals were making him wish he'd been allowed to have one. Stupid of him. His parents wouldn't let him even take care of a hamster, much less a dog.</p><p>
  <strong>…build up enough energy according to the set parameters and release it. In theory, the collective energy should propel itself straight upward to the Shinjuku tear and transcend through the levels of the different planes, which will allow...</strong>
</p><p>A dog would be nice. Takato <em>could</em> take care of it, he thought he was pretty responsible for his age. After all, look how he'd taken care of Guilmon, Sure, it had been hard, but Guilmon was healthy, which went to show he'd probably been giving him the proper care. Try telling that to Mom and Dad.</p><p>
  <strong>…the breach through the barrier between planes will result in...<br/></strong>
</p><p>Takato's eyes rested on the greyhound. Actually, now that he thought about it, a dog just like the Juggernaut would be great. The animal was almost unreal, the stray flickers of sunlight turning its fur into glimpses of blazing silver as the tree branches outside rasped comfortably in the gentle breeze.</p><p><strong>When the barrier has been disabled, it entirely possible it will affect the - …</strong>The Juggernaut trailed off, its sleek head rising up and fixing on Takato, who was still staring into space. In the silence that followed Takato blinked sheepishly, realizing the computer had stopped talking and was now looking questioningly at him. <strong>Are you paying attention, companion system?</strong></p><p>"Um…I was…uh…" Takato made an attempt to look away, but his eyes seemed to move with a will of their own and locked back onto the greyhound. He scratched the back of his head. He sighed as the Juggernaut waited expectantly for an answer. Yeah, he would ask, he decided as he blurted, "Um…I know this is <em>really</em> off-topic and stuff, but…er…could I, uh…pet you?"</p><p>The response from the Juggernaut was classic. The greyhound stared at him sharply in astonishment, falling completely silent at the question as if it had difficulty processing it. He'd actually caught the machine off guard. It occurred to him maybe the Juggernaut wouldn't agree. <em>Hopefully that's not the case.</em></p><p>It wasn't. The beautiful dog lowered its head so that its snout rested on its paws. It looked almost like a gesture of submission.</p><p><strong>Very well</strong>. The false amusement was evident in the Juggernaut's omnipresent voice. <strong>You may do so. But you must pay attention to what I say. It holds great importance to what will come.</strong> To the computer's credit, it even pretended to wag its tail, for a moment looking like a real greyhound. <strong>Do not let your mind wander away from what I am telling you – all you have to do is keep it open, and you may pet me as long as you like.</strong></p><p>Takato wasted no time in plopping himself right next to the gray animal. <em>You're sure this is okay?</em> He asked doubtfully. <em>You don't mind?</em></p><p>
  <strong>It is fine. And no, I do not mind. It is not my body – only a representation – and I do not have the ability to care. So it matters little to me if you pet me or not.</strong>
</p><p>A blunt answer, but Takato was really just happy with the way things turned out. There was a little surge of triumph. He hadn't been expecting the machine would let him do this, but he supposed he guessed wrong. Yet another misjudgment he'd made regarding the Juggernaut. Tentatively, he reached out with one hand and lightly touched the glistening gray fur. For a brief moment, it was coarse, then the avatar's sleek form shimmered and rippled as a black eye turned to fix on him. Another braver touch. The fur was no longer coarse; now it was impossibly soft, he found, his long fingers passing with open admiration over the gray coat. Just like the chinchilla in his memories.</p><p>As he did this, the Juggernaut resumed its lecture, satisfied the Tamer was ready to listen.</p><p>
  <strong>It is because of the merge we will succeed where there has only been failure. The merge will result in…</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki felt positively lazy as he lay on his back, aware of the sheets under him, aware of his blond hair lying in a messy halo around his head, the damp strands tickling his cheek. Aware, too, of the warmth of another body at his side. From the murmurs Reika made, the model was just as sleepy as he was.</p><p>But that didn't stop her from asking those questions.</p><p>A warm hand snaked up under the sheets and caressed his arms, the her fingernails brushing his skin. Yamaki had kept his arms crossed across his bare chest when they finished, although he made no attempt to pull away from the lingering touches, which were just as familiar as he remembered. The fingers paused as they encountered the same old obstacles they found every night the two did this. Reika began tracing the ridges of scars. They were old, years old. They hadn't faded away. Yamaki wasn't sure he wanted them to.</p><p>"I don't think these were all from a suicide attempt," Reika breathed.</p><p>"You know me better than that."</p><p>The probing fingers poked at one particularly large scar as Yamaki turned his head to focus sleepily on his companion. Reika glanced up, her eyes unreadable in the dim light peeping in through the drawn shades. "Then where did you get them?"</p><p>"That's none of your business," he replied softly.</p><p>This remark earned a snort. "It's never my business."</p><p>"I have them. It's old news."</p><p>Her voice was husky as she gave a low chuckle. She pressed on.</p><p>"An accident, then?"</p><p>"I was careless at the time." Yamaki closed his eyes. Reminded himself later to open a window or something – the scent of sex wasn't particularly pleasing to him. Besides, that scent drowned out the more pleasant one of the model's hair. <em>Rose? I could have sworn it was rose last time. Or maybe it was freesia?</em> "Accidents happen."</p><p>"Not to you."</p><p>"No one's perfect."</p><p>Reika pressed herself closer, tucking her head so it rested on his naked shoulder. He could feel her lips teasingly brush up against his skin as she spoke. A final tweak at one of the raised ridges from his uneven scars: "You like to pretend you are, though."</p><p>"Bull."</p><p>"That's not very professional," she purred. Despite his natural suspicions, Yamaki started to drift away. Tonight had been surprisingly satisfying. His body was fine with just lying where it was now that it had lost all that tense energy. Still, he didn't trust himself. If he fell asleep, he might say something he shouldn't.</p><p>Reika yawned. Yamaki could feel her warm body shifting against his as she stretched languidly. Her breath was hot against his skin as she sighed, content. He was silent for a moment, before his low voice broke the heavy, comfortable silence:</p><p>"Go to sleep. It's two in the morning, Reika."</p><p>"Am I hitting too close to home?" Reika murmured. It was impossible to tell if she was speaking matter-of-factly or mockingly.</p><p>"Not even close," he replied. The lie came easily to him, years of practice making it less and less difficult to tell the same one over and over again.</p><p>"Really." Although Reika was on the verge of falling asleep, her tone was dry.</p><p>"Really."</p><p>A sound of disbelief floated up from the darkness. "So then I would be just as wrong if I thought you were not even Yamaki Mitsuo until recently?"</p><p>For a brief moment that seemed to stretch into endless eternity, Yamaki froze, going rigid. How had she known that? He'd be more than careful keeping his personal records from the public eye. They were as good as gone. No one could salvage them, not even himself, not even if his life depended on it. <em>But if she knows that much, then…</em> That was it. She didn't know, thus the question. It was only a guess. <em>She doesn't know.</em> He realized with a thick wave of satisfaction, breathing easier now. <em>She never did.</em></p><p>And never would.</p><p>"Wrong and gullible for believing those rumors."</p><p>"Are you suggesting you miraculously appeared out of nowhere?" Reika asked into the crook of his neck, her lips brushing against his chin. Her movements were slow as she kissed him.</p><p>"Not at all." He obliged Reika and tilted his head back into the pillow so she could press closer, his eyes still closed. "I <em>am</em> suggesting you shouldn't bother bringing up a dead subject."</p><p>"Does it bother you?" An experimental prod.</p><p>"It does when I'm trying to get some sleep and a certain someone keeps asking all these questions."</p><p>Reika's laugh was almost inaudible, a nearly silent chiming sound. "Nosy, huh?" She nipped at him underneath his jaw line, but didn't go any further. "Nosy questions come from nosy people, right?"</p><p>"Exactly."</p><p>"You ever think there's a reason for nosy questions?"</p><p>"Never. Far as I'm concerned, you can keep on asking long as you like."</p><p>Reika was quiet for a long second, apparently thinking something over, and he felt her moving away from him, the comfortable warmth drawing away. It was colder now that she was further away, but he wasn't about to come crawling over and insist she stay by his side. It wouldn't matter anyway. She'd be gone by the time he woke up. And it looked like she'd stopped with the questions for the night, which made him sigh with relief.</p><p>However, it looked like his guess was off the mark as a sigh drifted up from the shadows.</p><p>"How long have we been doing this, Yamaki?"</p><p>A pause as he thought about it. "Almost a year? Or two?"</p><p>"That long?" Yamaki's eyes crept open, glancing with sleepy curiosity at the woman next to him. Reika's smooth back was to him, lying now closer to the edge of the bed. It wasn't a large bed, but from where he lay, the distance between them looked immeasurable. "Seems like it's only been a few months." A yawn, which proved to be contagious as he tried to stifle his that followed suit. "Maybe I just need some sleep right now, but it seems like it…" she trailed off.</p><p>
  <em>Is this over? Are you tired of me now, I wonder?</em>
</p><p>But he didn't say anything. Yamaki didn't exactly pride himself on being tactful, but there was some little voice in the back of his mind that decided it was wiser to keep silent. If Reika felt like rambling, well, then fine, she could go right on ahead, he certainly wasn't going to stop her. Yamaki kept his breaths even and slow, staring up and regarding the dark ceiling above him. It was a bit strange – usually her questions were a lot longer and intense, but something was on her mind tonight.</p><p>"Never mind."</p><p>Reika had been on the verge of admitting something. <em>Maybe she doesn't trust me?</em> Yamaki wondered. It wasn't his business what she thought or what she did. As long as she didn't slack off at Hypnos, he wasn't going to say anything.</p><p>He probably should focus on work himself. It hadn't been made clear to him just what the meeting tomorrow was about, or even why. No, he'd been simply told that Nagamora would "like to have a private discussion"<em>. A private discussion at five in the goddamn morning? "Private conversation" my ass.</em> It was hard to determine what Nagamora thought or how much he knew that Yamaki and it just rubbed him the wrong way to hand out information when withholding it was just safer. He couldn't explain why he got this vibe off his superior. That perfectly <em>normal</em> face, for one. Nagamora surely wasn't aware of the extent of Yamaki's knowledge concerning the digital threat and the previous incidents.</p><p>It was far, far greater than just that one incident.</p><p><em>And it's going to stay that way.</em> Nagamora knew things regarding the digital menace (hence the reason for the agreement to pour funds into Hypnos) that <em>he</em> didn't, but Yamaki had access to hundreds of files he "forgot", numerous times, to bring up whenever they met. Files that outlined the plans, files that had all known data on Digimon saved on them, even files from long ago that described the first incident with the Digital World. <em>Funny what a little research on my part can dig up</em>. Yamaki had stumbled across the curt, emotionless reports when he'd first started Hypnos – being more than a little proficient, it had been easy to get into the government's network.</p><p>He'd been bored at the time, if he recalled correctly.</p><p>Of course, it had been a big shock then. He'd been already aware by that time there was something up with his newfound sponsors, but he hadn't been expecting <em>that</em> level of participation. According to the clandestine report, Nagamora's branch had been involved in the first Digital World incident. It had been their officials that saw to the clean up. It shook him badly to think <em>she</em> hadn't been the only victim – no, she'd been, what, the ninth? Tenth? But that wasn't an excuse.</p><p>There was no excuse.</p><p>It was easy to blow off Nagamora during the video-conferences, but when it was face-to-face…well, it was safe to say Yamaki stayed on his toes. Better to dumb himself and his operations down, and pretend to be far more dependent on Nagamora than he truly was. <em>Never know – the man just might slip himself.</em> And he'd be waiting. It was the previous involvement with Digimon, and Nagamora himself, that made the him instinctively suspicious.</p><p>Yamaki listened to the slow rhythm of Reika's breathing not too far away. She eventually drifted off, the model now fast asleep.</p><p>Yamaki closed his eyes, focusing on letting himself relax. He'd heard on average it took a human seven minutes to go to sleep. His work these days wasn't pointless, not like it had been before the Incident. But he didn't let himself get caught up in the "glory" of it all – he wasn't some knight on his crusade against evil. Far from it. His operations were almost completely covert, for one thing. And he wasn't doing this just for himself anymore.<em> I'll delete them all, for the good of everyone.</em> If they were deleted…it wouldn't erase the past, but he would be damned if it would happen again while he was alive. It was painfully obvious those kids he recently saw and their pet Digimon were going to be prime targets.</p><p>After all, it had been the same the first time there was contact with the Digital World.</p><p>It had been the same when <em>she</em> met her partner. It didn't take long for the monsters to hunt her down. They had been hauntingly efficient.</p><p>Yamaki's fingers touched the raised skin of a scar just above his collarbone. He couldn't possibly forget the sensation of falling through that glass, feeling it sprinkling around him as he hit the floor inside. The searing agony of the chunks of glass that had been forced into his arms and other parts of his body. Those scar were testimony of his failures in the past, mistakes Yamaki would never make again in his lifetime. For him, what happened to then would never repeat itself.</p><p><em> But are others going to make the same, wrong decisions? Is this just an endless cycle?</em> He hoped not, but he found he couldn't summon up any faith in the strength of humanity.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. SIDE STORY Yamaki Mitsuo – Blind Eyes PART 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>SIDE STORY</p><p>An encounter with Digimon sends Yamaki on a fateful path toward Hypnos. </p><p>Part 1 of 2.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/>Author's Note: A 2-part side story focused on Yamaki, taking a peak into his past when he was a different man, before Hypnos. This was written around 2001-2002ish. A little bit slice of life-ish that also will show his first fateful encounters with Digimon.<br/><br/>There will be a few Side Stories in Digital Shuffle, generally following other characters aside from Jenrya, Takato and Ruki.<br/><br/><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(SIDE STORY Yamaki Mitsuo – Blind Eyes PART 1)</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Four years ago</em>
</p><p>"This isn't the greatest time to be bringing this up again, Eiji." Yamaki shifted the phone to his other ear. "Look. I just got divorced, I'm due for a meeting in about three hours, I just got off the damn plane, and I need a bath."</p><p>"I'm not demanding you come over first thing. Just reminding you that you promised. Remember?"</p><p>Yamaki sat down on the edge of the hotel's bed. "Yeah yeah, you don't need to keep pounding me over the head about it."</p><p>He began to unbutton the cuffs of his shirt, holding the phone clamped down between his cheek and his shoulder as he rolled up his sleeves. All he really wanted was a nice long soak in the suite's bath and an even longer nap on the heels of <em>that</em>, but he knew just because he was sore and cranky, he didn't have the right to take it out on his older brother like that. Not exactly a good impression he was making, especially considering how long he'd been away.</p><p>With a sigh, he said, "I'm being an ass, aren't I?"</p><p>"You are." Eiji replied cheerfully. "But you can make it up by keeping your promise."</p><p><em>Damn him.</em> Yamaki scowled. Opportunist<em>.</em> And Eiji <em>knew</em> Yamaki wouldn't go against his word: the he knew how he hated debts, first of all, and how he always tried to do what was right. Taking time off to visit family was most definitely falling in the "right" category.</p><p>"You win. You're leaving tomorrow at noon, right?"</p><p>"Yup," his brother said. There was a shuffling of papers from the other side of the line, "Yeah, we'll be back by Monday. Ish."</p><p>"I'll come in the morning then. I'm staying at your house until you return?"</p><p>"We'll take care of the hotel cancellation, so yeah, don't worry about it. 'Sides, we'll be back before you can settle in. I can't have my little runt of a brother squatting in our house." Eiji said. Unseen on the other end of the line, Yamaki rolled his eyes at this. He wasn't <em>that</em> small, first of all – tall for his age, actually – and he was younger by only a few years. Eiji laughed quietly, changing subjects, "You know, she's really looking forward to seeing you again."</p><p>Yamaki couldn't help a smile. "It's been what, six months?"</p><p>"Try again."</p><p>"Two years?"</p><p>"That's about right. She<em>'s</em> been pestering us since the day you said you were visiting," Eiji added. "If you have time, why don't you drop by tonight for dinner?"</p><p>"We'll see how long the meeting goes. I'll try."</p><p>Eiji only chuckled. "Brownie points for effort, Yamaki. I'll be seeing you."</p><p>"Me too. Bye, Eiji." Yamaki replied and hung up.</p><p>It had been a long time since he talked to his brother – or the rest of his family, actually. Since his decision to get married three years earlier, his parents made it clear they hadn't agreed with the marriage. He wouldn't be surprised if they disowned him. It was obvious they no longer wanted to deal with the "troublemaker" of the family.</p><p><em>They told me not to get married to that woman – they warned me over and over, but </em>no<em>, I didn't listen…</em></p><p>
  <em>Still...</em>
</p><p>With a grunt, he pushed away the blinds and headed to the window. Yamaki drew the blinds, the light from outside slanting through the opened slats and casting bars across his face. Below the hotel, traffic streamed. Everyone down there knew where they were going. Apparently not him. He knew he looked like hell and he needed to clean himself up so he'd at least give the impression he was a professional.</p><p>Yamaki stepped over his luggage, and hit the bathroom, unbuttoning his shirt as sore muscles protested. He still couldn't figure out what made Yayoi suddenly pack up and demand they file for divorce, all he knew he hadn't agreed with it, but he'd went along anyway, deciding if it made Yayoi happy, he'd have to. Another dejected sigh. The sudden announcement his wife wanted a divorce had been stunning and the events afterward were a blur, leaving Yamaki dazed in the frenzied aftermath of paperwork and attorneys exchanges over money.</p><p>Which left him with alone, with his company was laying off people. For all he knew, he was next. Maybe he could go broke too.</p><p>Yet all he could think about was Yayoi.</p><p>He peeled off his shirt, frowning down at the tiled floor. His parents, when he first introduced Yayoi, furious with disapproval afterward. He could still hear their words; that he wouldn't amount to anything if he continued to maintain relations with "that <em>girl</em>", that "she was the type who' never be satisfied with anything". The fight which carried on into days, then weeks and finally into months – it wasn't long before he left the city, vowing that he wouldn't ever ask for their help for anything. That he would be fine and happy with his new wife.</p><p>So much for that.</p><p><em>Well, I'm </em>not<em> here to ask for help</em>. Yamaki reminded himself. He was here for business and visitation. In an unusual display of temper he kicked his shirt into the corner. It was frustrating, how he had to tip-toe around so his parents wouldn't know he was here – he made Eiji and his wife Yawara promise they wouldn't say a word about his return. Still, it'd be worth it. It'd been a long time since he'd played with his brother's kids. Yamaki wondered how they were doing in school now.</p><p>He was looking forward to seeing the two in person. Pictures really didn't do them justice.</p><p>His niece looked adorable in the photo Eiji gave him, her brown hair done up in two little pigtails. She was the one he'd be watching over for the next few days. Eiji told him that she had wanted to stay behind because she knew her favorite uncle. The rest of the family – Eiji, Eiji's wife Yawara, and Junko's brother Shin – would be gone for several days on some kind of family outing.</p><p><em>I'm going to have to think up something for us to do together.</em> Yamaki realized. He should prove that he was <em>still</em> the uncle she loved, and not the complete jerk he felt he was at the moment. He'd get a chance to take a look at Junko's drawings too. Eiji had bragged about her earlier, saying, "She's gotten really good, she's always drawing these days. She's <em>crazy</em> over this new game that came out – she wants me to get the cards for her birthday, y'know."</p><p>Curiously, Yamaki asked, "What's this game called?"</p><p>"Digimon."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Saturday, morning</em>
</p><p>Junko perfected the flying tackle, complete with kisses and giggles.</p><p>"I'm happy to see you too!" Yamaki laughed. He easily held the six year-old in his arms as Junko began patting his blond hair as if it were a carpet.</p><p>"Where <em>were</em> you?" Junko demanded, with a mock pout.</p><p>Yamaki grinned at his little niece, "Oh, here…there…a little bit of everywhere…"</p><p>"Uncle Yama, really! Where were you? I was waiting and waiting!"</p><p>Yamaki turned as Eiji cleared his throat behind him. His older brother had cropped his own blond hair short to only a few centimeters, military short, far shorter than his younger brother's, his tinted glasses glinting in the morning sun. Aside from that, his brother looked about the same as when he'd last seen him. A bit thicker built than Yamaki, Eiji's face was more rounded, accented by tiny laugh lines crinkling at the corners of his eyes.</p><p>"Junko, what did I tell you about leaping at people like that?" he said, "You can't expect everyone to catch you. One of these days you're going to fall doing that and crack open your skull."</p><p>Junko made a face, "Will <em>not</em>! I never hurt myself. 'Sides, Uncle Yama always catches me." She glanced at her uncle for support from her dad, who was apparently soaking up all the fun and replacing it with all the boring stuff.</p><p>"She's right, Eiji," Yamaki came to her rescue. "I don't drop things…" he paused, and smiled evilly at his niece, "Except certain little <em>nieces</em>!"</p><p>He let go of her as he said these words – Junko let out a delighted shriek as she plummeted - but his niece only fell a few inches before he caught her again, sweeping her up. Junko burst into giggles. Eiji only shook his head at Yamaki, unable to prevent the smile from creeping onto his face.</p><p>"You're no better than she is."</p><p>Yamaki chuckled. "I am <em>not</em>."</p><p>"He is <em>too</em>!" Junko said at the same time. Yamaki grinned.</p><p>"Guess I can't lie. You caught me there, Junko: I admit it – I'm hopelessly and incurably immature."</p><p>"See, Daddy, I was right!"</p><p>Her father grunted good-naturedly, "So you were. Yamaki, why don't you come in? We're not ready to go yet."</p><p>Eiji made a motion for Yamaki to come in. He followed his older brother into the house, slipping out of his shoes as he hefted his niece onto his shoulders. Junko gave a squeal as she settled behind his neck, legs waving as she clasped small hands around his forehead. The three trooped down the hall, approaching what he remembered as the kitchen. As they neared the room, two heads popped around the doorway.</p><p>"Oh, hello, Yamaki!" The taller of the two said. Yawara flashed an easy grin at both her husband and Yamaki, "Thanks so much for coming."</p><p>"Uncle Yama!" The other, a young boy who looked to be about two years younger than Junko, made an identical expression as his mother, though he had a tooth missing, "Are you goin' on vacation with us?"</p><p>"Much as I'd love to, I regret to say I'm not.</p><p>Shin pouted, "Aww…"</p><p>Yawara frowned, "Shin…"</p><p>The young boy pulled a face. "Sorry".</p><p>Yamaki stepped into the kitchen, and got down onto his knees to allow Junko to hop off. Eiji joined the group, moving about the table so he was standing behind the counter. Yawara motioned for the younger brother to take a seat at the table, as Shin and Junko ran off to their rooms to retrieve some toys or drawings they wanted to show off.</p><p>Yawara crossed her arms on the table, leaning forward, "So, it's been awhile, Yamaki. How's things?"</p><p>Yamaki settled back in his chair. "Managing. Doing okay," he lied.</p><p>The woman blinked, "Really? That's good. I heard you got divorced…?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>Yawara sighed, shaking her head, "I'm sorry to hear that. Still living in Osaka?"</p><p>He nodded, "For now."</p><p>Eiji joined in, stirring something bubbling in a pot, "So, then where are you going to move to?"</p><p>"Don't know yet," Yamaki shrugged.</p><p>Yawara pointed at herself, her lips turning up in that friendly, accepting grin mirroring her husband's, "You're always welcome here."</p><p>"Thanks." Yamaki glanced over his shoulder around the kitchen as he changed the subject, "What about you two? I've a lot to catch up on."</p><p>Eiji exchanged a special glance with his wife, who smiled. Her hand unconsciously smoothed her sweater over her stomach. Yamaki's eyebrow shot up as he suddenly noticed how the material of her clothing was stretched taunt.</p><p>"You're…you're…" he stammered intelligently.</p><p>"Pregnant? Might be." Yawara winked.</p><p>"Congratulations," said Yamaki, stunned.</p><p>The silence was broken by the two kids racing back in. Shin slid past the door, his socked feet skidding on the floor's wooden panels. Yawara shouted after him, her voice easily switching from the conversational adult one to that of a mom:</p><p>"No running in the house!"</p><p>There was a belated "sorry" followed by a muffled crash. Yawara made a long-suffering face. She shook her head, rubbing at her temples before looking up again.</p><p>"He never watches where he's going," Yawara sighed. She got up, pushing her chair back. "Excuse me. Time to break out the band-aids."</p><p>Yamaki nodded, watching as she left the kitchen. The quiet sniffles quickly died away as Shin was herded to the bathroom. Eiji began to ladle broth into several bowls as Junko ran in, her hands full of papers and several stuffed animals.</p><p>"Uncle Yama!" Junko made a beeline toward Yamaki. He picked up her up and sat her on his knee as she continued, "Here, look at this!"</p><p>He took the bundle of papers and spread them out on the table. Junko wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug, glancing from the drawings to her uncle, eager to see his reaction.</p><p>"Did you draw all of these yourself?" Yamaki held up one. He had to admit, he was genuinely impressed – Eiji hadn't been exaggerating at all. "These are really good!"</p><p>Junko beamed at him, pleased. She pointed with a childish finger at the creature on the crinkled paper, oblivious to its condition, "That's Gabumon. He's a Rookie." She leaned away from her perch on his knee, picking up another picture with the open pride of a young child – it was a little sketchy, but it looked like a white teddy (polar?) bear sporting red buttons down its chest, "And this is Frigimon. He's a Champion type. That's higher than a Rookie."</p><p>"A Champion type?" Yamaki then made a quick, wild guess, connecting two and two, "He's a Digimon, right?"</p><p>"Yup!" Junko looked delighted. She was probably used to blank stares and now was more than a little surprised when someone appeared to understand what she was talking about, "Digimon're fun, so I draw 'em all the time."</p><p>Yamaki began to gently bounce the six year-old on his knees, listening to her giggles in response, "I heard you like the game. Are these your favorites?"</p><p>"…yeah…but…" Junko leaned close, holding onto her uncle with one hand as she reached over with another, searching through the mass of pencil and crayon drawings. She held up another picture, this one of a dark creature with, (strangely enough) a toothy smiley face on its stomach, "He's my favorite. I like 'em all, but he's the <em>best</em>."</p><p>Yamaki regarded the picture. The legs looked a little deformed, and the black and purple crayon coloring went out of the sketchy lines everywhere (except for the little scarlet scarf), but overall, it looked pretty good. The Digimon stood in the center of the page on his two skinny legs, leaning a bit to the left as he made a silent, exaggerated growling expression, pale green eyes staring at him from the paper.</p><p>"What's he called? He looks almost like a little puppy."</p><p>Junko hugged the picture to her chest, "Impmon!" She then proceeded to rattle off his stats in a sing-song voice, "Rookie, virus-type, small Demon Digimon, Attacks: Badda Boom and Summon; Impmon's the greatest of them all! He's funny. And smart…and…and…" she trailed off, trying to find more words to describe the Digimon.</p><p>Eiji set down the bowls before them, laughing, "Impmon's all you talk about these days. What about the others? You used to like that dinosaur one a lot."</p><p>"Agumon," his daughter supplied as she was shifted to Yamaki's other knee in order to clear the way for her father. "Impmon's better 'cause he's got more per…p…pers…"</p><p>Eiji noticed Junko's trouble with the word, "Personality?"</p><p>"Yeah…he's got more per-son-ali-idy," Junko declared, carefully imitating her dad. Yamaki held her balanced on his knee as she began to slurp the broth, too preoccupied to talk any longer.</p><p>Yamaki kept silent, watching in amusement as the young girl ate. She was quiet once again, bending over the large bowl. Several times he had to pull her braids back from dipping into her food, though she didn't appear to notice the near misses or the saves. He forgot how much he enjoyed being in this family's company, even if it was only for a little while. With them, he was simply too distracted to brood over his own problem.</p><p>It was easy to fool himself that there was nothing wrong.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Several hours later</em>
</p><p>Junko and Yamaki waved as the car disappeared from view, rounding the corner. He dropped his arm as soon as he lost sight of it, his niece continuing to pump her arm in the air for a few more seconds. With a giggling, mischievous grin, she turned around, and took his larger hand in hers.</p><p>"Well, it looks like it's just the two of us."</p><p>Junko began heading toward the house, tugging her young uncle after her, "Good! No more mean Shin!"</p><p>Yamaki followed. He quickly stooped down and swept his niece onto his shoulder.</p><p>"First of all, sweetheart, your parents and Shin are only going to be gone a few days. They're coming back. Second, you really shouldn't say things you don't mean. You're going to hurt someone's feelings."</p><p>"I don't care! He's always taking my stuff and he's…he's…he's <em>mean</em>!" The young girl pouted.</p><p>"He's still your brother," Yamaki said. "If he wasn't here, who would you play with? It'd be very bored living here by yourself."</p><p>"I'd play with Impmon."</p><p>Yamaki glanced at his niece, sighing. She didn't seem to be getting his point at all, "I'm talking about real people here."</p><p>This comment earned him a gentle poke in the side of his head.</p><p>"Impmon's real."</p><p>"Not in the same way Shin is," Yamaki countered. Junko was young, he wasn't surprised she was infatuated with a game character. He was going to have to explain the differences between real and not-real sometime, but in such a way that he wouldn't dash her feelings into the ground after shooting them from the sky. "Thing is, Shin's always going to be with you. He's not mean to you <em>all</em> the time, is he?"</p><p>"…No…" Junko answered reluctantly.</p><p>"Besides, everyone fights over stuff," the two entered the house, Yamaki closing the door behind him and slipping out of his shoes. "Your Dad and I always used to fight." He stooped down carefully and set the two pairs of shoes on the threshold.</p><p>"Shin's a meanie," Junko said stubbornly. "He <em>broke</em> my phone - "</p><p>" - Toy phones can be replaced, kiddo."</p><p>" – and he hurt Impmon 'cause we got in a fight! I think he's still mad at us."</p><p>Now Yamaki was lost. Up till this point he'd been convinced that he was comfortably in control of the conversation. <em>Does she really think Impmon's real?</em></p><p>"Hey." Yamaki began gently, turning his head so he could see her. His niece looked up at him. Yamaki faltered. Was this in his right? He was only her uncle; the one who rarely visited her. After all, what was wrong with using your imagination while you still had it? You practically lost the damned thing when you were an adult, so…</p><p>He decided a change of tactics was in order. "Uh, why don't you tell me about this Digimon?"</p><p>"Impmon?" Junko perked up. At his nod, the young girl glowed. "He's small and purple with fur. He's got these funny little red gloves, and we gave him this bandana, so he wears it around his neck, and he's great and he says the funniest things –"</p><p>"Says? You can hear him?"</p><p>Junko shot him a Look, as if the very idea he couldn't was silly. "' Course I can hear him."</p><p>"Really."</p><p>His niece squirmed on her perch until her uncle removed her from his shoulders and set her down. Junko crossed her arms over her chest, attempting to block the hallway with her small frame.</p><p>"You don't think he's real!"</p><p>Yamaki sighed again and crouched down so that he was eye-to-eye with her, "I never said that."</p><p>"Impmon <em>is</em> real! I can prove it!" With that, Junko grabbed his hand and began leading him down the hall. He really couldn't imagine what she was going to show him – a favorite stuffed animal, maybe? – and he had to wonder what he was going to say.</p><p>Junko resolutely stomped down the hall. At the end of it she halted in her tracks, stopping before the closed door.</p><p>The kid narrowed her eyes up at Yamaki. "You gotta promise first 'fore you can meet him."</p><p>"Promise what?"</p><p>"Promise that you're not gonna tell Mommy and Daddy about him."</p><p>Yamaki wasn't sure he liked the sound of that. As a general rule, when a kid said something was to be kept from their parents, chances were that whatever <em>it</em> was, it was something those those adults weren't going to like. <em>What would a six year-old have that's dangerous?</em> He knew Junko better than that. Although she had have some fights with her brother, she was pretty peaceful and as far as he knew, she never got in a fight at school.</p><p>"I promise."</p><p>Junko fixed him with a stern stare. "Promise promise?" She held out her small pinky, curved in a little hook. Yamaki stooped down and linked hers with his. She shook it.</p><p>Yamaki disengaged his hand from his niece's, who looked satisfied now that she had his "official" word he would keep his promise.</p><p>"Okay, now that you promised, I'll show you to Impmon."</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>Junko laid her hand on the doorknob and, almost furtively, opened it, glancing around the door as she entered her bedroom. An opened window allowed fresh air and sunlight in. His niece stopped in the middle of the room, frowning. Yamaki came up behind her as the kid began frantically searching the room.</p><p>"He's gone?" Yamaki managed to keep his skepticism to a minimum.</p><p>"Yeah." Although he doubted Impmon was little more than a toy, the panic starting to rise in Junko's voice was very real. "I…I hafta find him…he…"</p><p>Yamaki watched as she pawed through her closet. Several stuffed animals rolled out, bounced, and lay silent on the floor. His niece refused to give up, bouncing onto her bed (she nearly tripped when she entangled herself in the sheets). Junko leaned haphazardly out the window. A squeal of relief.</p><p>"<em>Impmon</em>!" Junko pulled herself up, holding something in her arms. For a few seconds, her head bent and she whispered something he didn't catch.</p><p>"That him?"</p><p>"Yeah." Junko turned around, nodding at what she held in his arms as she turned around on the bed to face him. "Uncle Yama, this is Impmon. Impmon, this is Uncle Yama."</p><p><em>It's a stuffed animal</em>, was Yamaki's first thought. Sure, a large, fancy one, but definitely a stuffed animal. It was a spitting image of the drawing that his niece showed him earlier, though the puppy-like face was frozen in a neutral expression instead of the deep scowl that had been scrawled on the wrinkled paper. Junko glanced in confusion from her uncle to the Digimon toy she held in her arms.</p><p>"I don't get it…" Confused, Junko poked at the stuffed animal. "C'mon, Impmon, say hi to Uncle Yama. He's really nice and he knows about Digimon, so you can talk now."</p><p>No reaction from the Impmon toy. The eyes only glittered.</p><p>Junko prodded and pleaded and pouted. No matter what she did, the reaction was the same. Nothing. The six-year old was growing more flustered and embarrassed as the minutes ticked by and her efforts to get the Digimon to talk failed over and over.</p><p>Yamaki stopped down so that he was at eye level with Junko, "Maybe he doesn't want to talk right now."</p><p>Junko tried to suppress a sniffle. "You believe me? Impmon can talk, but he isn't and I don't know why…" She trailed off helplessly.</p><p>Yamaki decided it was wiser to dodge the question altogether.</p><p>"Hey, I have an idea. How about I go make us some popcorn and all three of us can watch a movie together?" He smiled winningly at her: it made him feel like an absolute jackass when Junko fought back a final sniff and tried bravely to return his smile. "He's just shy, I bet."</p><p>"I guess."</p><p>"Why don't you go pick a movie?"</p><p>"Okay." Junko fled the room, Impmon with her. It looked like a tornado hit her room. One day here and he was already picking up toys. Yamaki stooped down every now and then to pick up a toy or a stuffed animal, replacing them on a shelf or in a drawer.</p><p>Maybe he should take her somewhere tomorrow, especially since they didn't have that much time together. Yamaki racked his brain. The closest place he could think of was West Shinjuku. There were streets of stores and restaurants there and he decided it was up to him to treat her to something special. A small grin. At this time of the year, it probably shouldn't be very crowded, which was perfectly fine with him. <em>It's been a long time since I've done anything fun with Junko.</em> Now that he thought about it, he realized he was looking forward to tomorrow.</p><p>By the time the movie credits began rolling, Junko decided she was fine with staying in the house for the day, as long as her uncle would play with her. The lazy afternoon soon deepend into twilight when it occurred to Yamaki he was on dinner duty.</p><p>As Yamaki began taking inventory of the refrigerator and the pantry, his niece plopped herself down at the table to draw. He turned back to what he was doing, rummaging through the shelves for the ingredients. When he turned around, he nearly fell backward into the pantry with surprise as he suddenly found himself almost face-to-face with the Impmon toy presented to him by Junko.</p><p>"Can he watch you make dinner, Uncle Yama?"</p><p>"Sure, why not?" </p><p>Yamaki carefully took the stuffed animal from his niece. To his surprise, it was a lot firmer than he'd thought. It almost felt like there were bones (plastic inserts, no doubt) underneath the lifelike fur. Warm. Huh. Yamaki shrugged mentally and put the Impmon toy near the cutting board, setting out the packages, along with an apple that he was intending to eat later. Turning around again, he began searching through the refrigerator for some fish. Pulling it out, he glanced over his shoulder at the cutting board.</p><p>The apple was gone.</p><p>Yamaki blinked and glanced over at Junko. His niece was busy drawing. His confusion only increased when he found half of the fruit's core next to Impmon.</p><p>Could…? No, that was stupid. Now he was imagining things.</p><p>Yamaki couldn't help but glance suspiciously at the Impmon toy every now and then. The eyes gleamed mischievously back at him. His niece joined him in setting the table. She insisted he set out another bowl for Impmon.</p><p>Junko jumped into the chair, looking over the steaming rim of her bowl at her uncle:</p><p>"Smells yummy!"</p><p>A grin. "Probably because it is."</p><p>His niece only pretended to roll her eyes at this statement of the obvious and picked up her spoon.</p><p>"About Impmon, how long have you had him?"</p><p>Junko shrugged. "Two weeks, I guess."</p><p>"You don't know?" He raised an eyebrow at this. "How'd you get him?"</p><p>"I really dunno." Junko said. "Actually, I know <em>how</em>. Not <em>why</em>." She eyed the chunk of fish balanced in her spoon, wondering if she could fit the whole thing in her mouth. "He just appeared one day."</p><p>...Huh, okay.</p><p>After the dinner, he tried to shoo Junko away so he could clean up, but his niece stubbornly insisted on helping him out (she wanted to do the dishes). Or maybe she just wanted to play with the dish detergent.</p><p>Yamaki touched Junko's shoulder. "Going to make sure all the doors are locked. I'll be right back, okay?"</p><p>His niece didn't answer. She was too busy making a soap castle.</p><p>Yamaki left the room. His brother's family lived in a safe neighborhood. Yamaki knew he'd personally feel better if he checked, just to make sure, anyway. Old habit. Maybe he was just being paranoid though. <em>I mean, what can possibly happen in two days?</em></p><p>He checked the front door and began to work his way toward the back of the house, checking the windows, the toys left out earlier picked up so he wouldn't trip over them later. He'd just finished with cleaning up when he happened to look up from his work and noticed that the door to Junko's bedroom was open.</p><p><em>Didn't Junko close it?</em> He might as well go check if her windows were locked, Yamaki told himself as he headed down the hallway. Passing the kitchen, his step slowing as he glanced in. Junko was just as busy as she had been when he'd left, however, it <em>did</em> look like she tried to make a dent in the dirty dishes, because it appeared some of them were stacked on a rack nearby.</p><p>He was almost at it Junko's room when he noticed the stuffed animal sitting near the open door.</p><p><em>Y</em>amaki stooped down. "Now what are <em>you</em> doing out here? You should be in Junko's room," he scolded the toy as he picked it up.</p><p>No response. The eyes only gazed back at him with a silent, knowing stare.</p><p>Junko probably dropped him when she left her room. Toys didn't start running around on their own after all. Still shaking his head, Yamaki set the Digimon on Junko's bed.</p><p>"Stay put," he ordered the toy, half-joking.</p><p>With that done, Yamaki left the room and quietly closed the door shut behind him. He didn't see the stuffed animal shift from its position and leap down from the bed, nor did he see the door open noiselessly behind him. It was one mistake, out of many, that he would deeply regret a few days later. Perhaps, if he had been more careful and trusting, he would have been more prepared...</p><p>If he had looked, and <em>seen</em> for himself, Yamaki might have saved her.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 9:36 AM</em>
</p><p>Yamaki locked the door behind them as his niece gazed up at the dismal sky. Clouds overhead were thickening, in some places turning an ugly black, swelling like a large collection of large, purpling bruises. He pocketed the key in the depths of his coat, turning toward his niece. She was all smiles as she hugged Impmon to her.</p><p>"D'you think it's gonna snow? Oh, I hope it does!" Junko giggled. She swung their hands cheerfully as she planted a kiss on Impmon's head. "'Cause I <em>like</em> snow and this is Impmon's first winter here, y'know. So I want him to see it and stuff!"</p><p>"The way things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if it did snow." Yamaki returned his niece's grin as they headed for the subway station.</p><p>The trip to the subway station was uneventful. Yamaki frowned when they arrived onto the crowded platform. True, the subway was always crowded, but he didn't feel comfortable with all these people around his niece. Not all of them looked like they were going to work or shop and his eyes easily picked out the potential trouble-makers. He told himself he was just being over-protective, but his unease didn't seem to be going away. His grip on her hand had tightened unconsciously. Junko squirmed at this, making a pained face up at him.</p><p>"Uncle Yama, you're hurting me," she said, pouting.</p><p>"I'm sorry." Yamaki hastily loosened his death grip.</p><p>He should be more careful. Precaution was what mattered, not paranoia, he scolded himself. He was just jumping at non-existent threats for no reason.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 9:45 AM</em>
</p><p>To Junko's credit, she held on tightly to Yamaki's hand as they got onto the train. It was a tight fit, and he was shoved face-to-face with a middle-aged man. He did his best not to stare at other's bushy beard, avoiding direct eye contact. It was something he took for granted: whenever you were on the bus/train/subway/etc, it was a rule of thumb not to stare at people, mostly because it got awkward staring into one another person's eyes for who knew how long when they were only a few inches away.</p><p>But that didn't mean Junko had the same issues. She looked around at everyone's waists with the same open curiosity, her head craning up as she looked at the adults crowding around her, hugging Impmon to her chest.</p><p>Yamaki glanced at his watch. Still a while to go before they go to West Shinjuku…</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 10:02 AM</em>
</p><p>"Next stop, West Shinjuku." The message was repeated over, first in Japanese and then in English. "Next stop, West Shinjuku."</p><p>Yamaki started trying to push his way toward the doors, cursing quietly under his breath as the wall of people resisted him. The bearded man seemed to have the most trouble getting out of the way: he fiddled with his glasses, scrunched up his painfully normal face, and made a general nuisance of himself as he bungled around, mumbling apologies. He, Yamaki noticed with growing irritation, only seemed to place himself right in the middle of his path, blocking his way.</p><p>"We have arrived at West Shinjuku," the voice on the intercom noted. "Please exit the car when the train comes to a complete stop."</p><p>Over the passenger's heads, Yamaki could see the doors slide open, could see the platform on the other side, tantalizingly close. No matter what he did, the bearded man was in his way and he could only watch, annoyed, as the doors closed on him. Yamaki glared at the other passenger, who bobbed and nervously shoving his glasses up his face.</p><p>Junko tugged on his sleeve, trying to get his attention. He bent down until he was at eye-level with his niece, as the train lurched forward again.</p><p>"Are we in trouble?" Junko asked in a whisper.</p><p>Yamaki shook his head, keeping his voice low. "No, we'll just get off at the next stop. Don't worry about it. It's not your fault."</p><p>He began pushing his way forward. He gave up trying to be polite about the whole damn thing. Manners hadn't helped him and when that didn't, there was always the more effective method: brute force. He put his elbows in full use – when they were needed – and, ignoring the angry glares and the frowns from the other passengers, he eventually forced his way to the door. The next stop was announced just as Yamaki and Junko got to the side: the bearded man vanished in the crowd and Yamaki could see no sign of him. It had been the guy's fault that they'd missed his stop. <em>Thanks, genius.</em></p><p>The train slid to a halt. Surprisingly enough, the platform outside was empty and they were the only ones to leave the train. The train began to pull away as Junko looked up at her uncle, at first glancing around at the abandoned platform.</p><p>Junko gulped timidly. "Um…are you mad at me, Uncle Yama?"</p><p>"No way. I couldn't be mad at you." He smiled encouragingly at his niece. "It's <em>people</em> that make me mad, kiddo. Not you." He patted her hand reassuringly, and gestured toward the stairs leading to the surface. "Okay, I guess we'd better get started. We missed our stop, so we might have to walk."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 10:16 PM</em>
</p><p>Junko scowled. "I bet that mean man did it on purpose."</p><p>"I don't see why he would."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 10:17 AM</em>
</p><p>Junko traded Impmon to another arm as she took Yamaki's hand in hers. They began climbing up the stairs, leaving the darkness of the empty platform and heading to the surface.</p><p>For a second, Yamaki stopped in his tracks. This was weird – this place wasn't familiar at all, and it was even more strange because he thought he knew this area. But he recognized none of the buildings, and there were no landmarks (well, except for the Shinjuku Highrise building he could see far in the distance) that would prove to be of any help. <em>This isn't the stop I thought it was.</em> The thing was, he knew he hadn't heard wrong. But how could he explain this?</p><p>
  <em>What the hell is going on?</em>
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  <em>Sunday, 10:21 AM</em>
</p><p>Another tug on his hand.</p><p>"A-are we lost?" Junko noticed as well something was wrong. It was weird there didn't seem to be a living soul out on the streets besides them. Cars were parked along the sidewalks, but where was everyone? It was getting spooky.</p><p>Yamaki shaded his eyes, glancing down the street. "Might be, but I think we should be able to find our way." Overhead, the sky continued to darken threateningly. Yamaki sighed. <em>I guess we'd better start going before it gets any later.</em> He didn't expect to have to walk the entire way to their destination, but maybe he'd have better luck finding a bus or something further else down the road.</p><p>Besides, he thought he saw some heavy fog rolling in.</p><p>A smile. "Come on, let's go, Junko."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Day Unknown, Time Unknown</em>
</p><p>Yamaki wasn't sure what dragged him awake.</p><p>For some reason it was hard to think straight and he realized, after a dazed pause, that he'd been drugged. Whatever it was, it was wearing off now and pain stared to return as he slid away from the black depths of unconsciousness. Yamaki became aware of the little details. He was lying down on an unfamiliar bed. Drugged. Hurt, in several places. A long strip of gauze was wrapped around his head and covering his eyes. More bandages on his arms and shoulder. His breathing was even as he listened to the mechanical beeps of machinery.</p><p>He wasn't alone.</p><p>Whoever stood above him took a seat next to his bed as Yamaki turned his head blindly toward where he thought the person was. An older man's voice cleared his throat above the sounds of rustling papers.</p><p>"I see you're awake." A low sigh. "Please, try not to move around too much – you've been through a lot. You're very lucky, you know."</p><p>Yamaki's mouth turned down in a silent frown. What was going on? Why was he here? "Here" obviously being a hospital. Something in the back of his mind nagged at him, saying something wasn't <em>right</em> with this picture. Despite the man's order, he automatically started to raise his hand toward his face. Before he could touch the bandages blocking his vision, his arm was gently, but firmly forced back down onto the thin sheets. Yamaki opened his mouth and was considerably surprised to find his voice came out raw and hoarse, broken as if he'd been screaming for hours or something. He tried again, this time with a bit more success:</p><p>"Where…where am I?"</p><p>The doctor wrote something down, pen scratching. "The hospital." Another sound as he cleared his throat again. "How do you feel? Can you move the fingers of your left hand?"</p><p>Yamaki obeyed, wincing as the movement brought a ripple of pain up his arm. The man asked him to turn his head from left to right: did it hurt? Yes it did, and he would be under watch because of that concussion. Could he please move his legs a little bit? He did so. What about his chest – did his heart hurt or anything? No. His arms? Yeah. That was to be expected – it would be a few days before it would die down. Okay. And his eyes? Could he open and close them? Yeah.</p><p>One more question: did he remember anything before this?</p><p>Yeah, but it was a bit fuzzy at the moment. Well, he shouldn't worry about it right now. Yamaki was silent for a moment as the interrogation came to an end for the time being, the doctor falling quiet as he wrote something down.</p><p>Yamaki tried another question. "What happened? Why can't I see?"</p><p>The doctor ignored his first inquiry. "In the…ah, condition you were found in, your eyesight was partially damaged. Among other things." A noise beside him as something was set down on what he guessed was an end table. "We've done what we can, but you'll have to keep the bandages on for a few days more. Any further exposure to bright lights – or light of any kind – may result in more permanent damage."</p><p>"Are you saying that I'm…?</p><p>"That you're blind at the moment?" The doctor finished for his patient. "Yes. The blindness should be temporary, but it could take several months to a few years to regain full use of your eyes."</p><p>Yamaki turned his face away from the other man, his eyes open now under the bandages. What time was it? What day was today, for that matter? There were so many questions that he had – petty ones, important ones, irrelevant ones – and, for some reason, he was unable to sort his priorities out. Yamaki's initial unease only grew as the minutes ticked by. And his body – it <em>hurt</em> all over, the dull, buzzing pain blazing up whenever he moved and giving the darkness he was bathed in a sort of strange red "color".</p><p>"It's now 7:20 PM," the man's voice continued. "You've been under sedation for two days." A pause, and then the voice went on to clarify this. "Today is Tuesday, December 4." More scratching on paper, the gravely voice reading out loud what he was most likely jotting down on his clipboard. "Age twenty-five –"</p><p>Yamaki cut him off incredulously. "Wait, today's <em>Tuesday</em>?" In his growing panic, he started to sit quickly sit up, but was forced down again, this time not as gently as before. The act of moving so quickly left him light-headed and dizzy with pain.</p><p>"Please, Mr. Asamiya. I don't like being harsh, but if you keep moving around, you <em>will</em> aggravate your injuries. Please don't make me have to restrain you."</p><p>"What happened? What am I doing here?" No answer. From the sounds of it, the doctor was getting up to leave. A chair scooted back, its legs scrapping against the floor. Yamaki could sense the other pushing himself up from his seat.</p><p>"I'll have a nurse turn on the TV for you later tonight. I'm sure they'll have a news report for you to listen to."</p><p><em>Wait, don't go! </em>But Yamaki was suddenly <em>tired</em>, drained beyond belief. His body alternated from being frighteningly numb to twisting with the agony that danced along his limbs and clutched at his temples. The doctor opened a door somewhere. Yamaki's head lolled to the side as he tried to gather his fragmented thoughts together. He was forgetting something. No…not something. <em>Someone</em>.</p><p>Someone was missing. But his mind didn't seem to be clicking and it was working at a snail's pace. <em>Someone</em>…the doctor was almost out of the room when a hoarse shout rose up weakly from the bed.</p><p>"Wait, what about Junko? Where's my niece!?"</p><p>Click.</p><p>The doctor was gone. He was alone.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 10:32 AM</em>
</p><p>At first Yamaki hadn't thought much of the fog rolling in.</p><p>The mist grew thicker as they walked down the sidewalk. At first iwas at knee height and he had been so preoccupied he hadn't noticed it get higher until Junko started complaining her eyes were starting to hurt. She rubbed at them with the back of her hand, pawing at them as the tendrils of mist rose like dense steam around them. Yamaki stopped in his tracks as soon as he noticed the involuntary tears starting to form, sliding a damp trail his niece's cheek as she rubbed at her eyes.</p><p>"Did you get something in them?"</p><p>Junko shook her head. "N-no…"</p><p>The fog surrounded them now, growing thicker by the minute.</p><p>Eventually Yamaki started to feel the same symptoms. At first, it was just a vague irritation, but it grew worse and soon he was tearing furiously himself. He glanced at Junko as tears welled in his own eyes. For some reason, she was perfectly fine now, dry-eyed as she looked up at her uncle. As he glanced about the misty street, vision blurring, he didn't see the Impmon toy in his niece's arm move, didn't see it turn its head to where the fog was thickest.</p><p>It started to occur to Yamaki this fog wasn't natural.</p><p>It surrounded them now, and it was only getting denser. After a few yards away, everything disappeared into the mist. Something, some nearly forgotten instinct, was telling him to back away, to get away from this area. Right. Now.</p><p>Something was coming.</p><p>Junko sensed it too – the same animal instinct was warning her this was a <em>Bad Place</em>. She made no protest when he took her hand in his and began backing away from the fog, where it was getting so thick that it had turned a milky opaque color. The need to get away grew stronger and stronger, his alarm becoming very real. Another step backward. And another. They quickened. He had turned tail and started jogging, throwing glances over his shoulder as he tugged his niece after him. Pretty soon they were running.</p><p>They never made it out of the Digital Field.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Tuesday, Time Unknown</em>
</p><p>"-Yamaki?"</p><p>"He's resting right now, sir."</p><p>"Tell. Me. What. <em>Happened</em>!? Where's my daughter?! Why can't I see her?!"</p><p>Yamaki drowsily opened one eye against the gauze bandages. Although he couldn't see, he could hear the voices outside of the room, just beyond the paper-thin walls. Stark terror welled up as he recognized them. A man's voice spoke up again, followed by that of a woman's. Someone was crying. Eiji was choking up in grief as he asked another question, demanded some answers. Whoever else was with the couple said something too low for Yamaki to catch, but he was swimming in shame as he lay motionless in his bed.</p><p>They were here. And they knew now.</p><p>
  <em> She's dead…isn't she…?</em>
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  <em>Sunday, 10: 40 AM</em>
</p><p>Something was coming…</p><p>It was almost here.</p><p>They ran.</p><p>The foggy air was heavy as their footsteps pounded against the sidewalk, echoing back at them as if walls were forming around them. Yamaki found no time to think, his breath racing as he ran at full tilt through the thick fog. Junko stumbled behind him.</p><p>It was only years later Yamaki would learn this phenomenon was the act of a Digimon bio-emerging into the Real World. That this was a Digital Field. All he knew at the time was the inhuman roar that suddenly split through the blinding fog was bloodcurdling. The noise cut through the air, so deafening Yamaki clapped his hands to his ears in a futile effort to drown it out. His niece yelped in pain, covering her own ears.</p><p>It was then that the stuffed animal in Junko's arm came alive.</p><p>Yamaki thought he was seeing things. This <em>couldn't</em> be real, this had to be some sort of trick! Impmon jumped down from his niece's arms, had done it of his own free will. His large, pale eyes turned up to glance at the humans behind him. He was real. And very much alive. Impmon assumed a defensive stance, standing protectively in front of Yamaki and Junko.</p><p>He had no choice but to accept this Digimon-are-real development.</p><p>Still, he couldn't help a surprised jump when the toy opened its mouth and actually <em>spoke</em>.</p><p>"It's another Digimon," A cocky, fanged grin at Junko. "Don't worry yer pretty little head. I got it all under control." The smile vanished as Impmon turned serious. "I'll try to fight 'im off, Junko, delay 'im a bit: I'll tell you two when to run."</p><p>Yamaki swallowed his bitter shock. Junko nodded, biting her lip in an effort to hide her fear.</p><p>"Junko, I'm gonna need you t' take out yer Digivice. This ain't a game anymore." Impmon's posture stiffened, fur bristling as he scanned the fog around them. Junko pulled something out of her small backpack. It was about the size of a beeper, the symmetrical casing a light tan. The Digivice's screen glowed a neutral green as it nestled in her palm. "Push the button on the right corner."</p><p>Although Impmon had his back turned to the humans, Yamaki could see his shoulders droop slightly as he scanned the area in front of them. It was obvious to Yamaki he'd just gotten some bad news. But Impmon didn't let this show to Junko, instead giving an almost disdainful snort.</p><p>"Musyamon, Champion level. Violent Dismissal and White Bird Blade." Impmon cracked the knuckles of his gloved paws, aiming for nonchalant. Yamaki wasn't fooled. "Piece o' cake."</p><p>It was at the end of the Rookie's little speech the heavy footsteps of something approaching them became audible. Armor clanked hollowly against itself as a shadow began to materialize in the haze. Yamaki kept his own body between his niece and whatever was coming after them, backing away a few steps. He glanced down at his niece, ignoring the way his heart pounded frantically with adrenaline. Junko clung onto his coat, her small fingers clamped with a death-grip. They both could feel the "it" coming, a dark, dizzying wave sweeping over them.</p><p>The Thing came into view, emerging from the haze. Yamaki sucked in a breath of horror. It was a monster. Standing several feet taller than Yamaki, Musyamon towered over everyone. The creature – the young man could only assume this was a Digimon as well – walking steadily toward them on its hind-legs, the gray face set low on its bulging ashy neck. The burnt yellow eyes regarded the three. Its red plates of armor rattled as it closed the distance between them, the samurai helmet tassel limp in the still air.</p><p>When it was merely several yards away, the monster stopped, sizing the group up slowly.</p><p>"So you're the ones that escaped," Musyamon drew his blade with a smooth motion, the weapon exiting its sheath with a hungry hiss. A gravelly rumble as the Digimon's eyes flicked from Yamaki to Junko and finally to Impmon. "I thought there was only a few humans."</p><p>"Times change," Impmon spat murderously. "Why can't you leave us alone?"</p><p>"Orders are orders. If you hadn't come here, your lives would have both been spared." The point of the saber flicked from Junko to Impmon. Musyamon lowered his blade into a "ready" stance. "I will give you a minute to prepare yourselves for an honorable deletion."</p><p>Junko's grip on Yamaki's coat tightened. Yamaki laid his hand on hers – true, it was a feeble gesture of comfort, but there was little else he could do – and making sure that he stood between the monster and his niece. The Digimon across from them was still as stone, but the unnatural golden eyes were still fixed on them, hooded under large lids. Impmon was the first to make any movement: he stepped angrily forward, his paws curling into tight fists as he glared up at Musyamon.</p><p>"I'm not gonna let you hurt them! Y'think I'm gonna sit around and let myself be deleted?!" Impmon shouted, his voice coloring with fury. "I won't let you take Junko away from me!"</p><p>Musyamon lowered his head in acceptance. "So you desire to put up a fight then?"</p><p>"Damn straight I do! You're gonna have t'get past me first!"</p><p>"Very well." Taking his time, the Champion shed his cloak of fur, tossing aside the sheath of his massive sword. It clattered loudly onto the abandoned street as he took a two-handed grip on the hilt of his saber. "Fight honorably and I will make your elimination painless. If you prove yourself to me, then I will gladly offer my humble services and upload your data myself."</p><p>"We'll see 'bout that." Impmon snarled. He glanced over his shoulder at Junko. His eyes met Yamaki's. "I'd get back if I were you. It's gonna get messy an' I don't wanna see either of you get hurt. If I can hold 'im off long enough, you might be able t'get out of the digital field."</p><p>Yamaki nodded, trying to keep steady. He didn't have any weapons and there was only so much he could do with his bare hands. Considering the fact he was new to this whole Digimon thing, he wasn't about to question the advice. Impmon's remark, however, only brought a gurgling laugh as the Champion stared down the length of his blade at the group before him.</p><p>"Even if they escape, I will seek out the girl. She will be Purged." The laughter died as Musyamon's eyes narrowed. "I will keep coming until the threat has been disposed of. The most you can do is make this a battle worth remembering." A salute with the saber. His stance shifted. "My mission comes to a close."</p><p>With no warning, he charged.</p><p>"<em>Bada Boom!</em>"</p><p>"<em>Violent Dismissal!</em>"</p><p>
  <strong>End of Part 1- to be continued</strong>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. SIDE STORY Yamaki Mitsuo – Blind Eyes PART 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>SIDE STORY</p><p>An encounter with Digimon sends Yamaki on a fateful path toward Hypnos. HE witnesses his first Purge against a human and also meets Nagamora, benefactor of Hypnos.</p><p>Part 2 of 2.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon.<br/>Author's Note: A 2-part side story focused on Yamaki, taking a peak into his past when he was a different man, before Hypnos. This was written around 2001-2002ish. A little bit slice of life-ish that also will show his first fateful encounters with Digimon.<br/><br/>There will be a few Side Stories in Digital Shuffle, generally following other characters aside from Jenrya, Takato and Ruki.<br/><br/><em>Italics</em> for thoughts and emphasis and sound effect.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(SIDE STORY Yamaki Mitsuo – Blind Eyes PART 1)<br/><br/></strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Tuesday, Time Unknown</em>
</p><p>At some point Yamaki must've fallen asleep. More sedatives, probably. He didn't have any dreams: just an endless tunnel of nothing. He wasn't sure how long he'd been out, but when he began to fight his way back to consciousness, he almost jumped out of his skin when he realized he wasn't alone.</p><p>Someone held his hand. His eyes flared open uselessly against the bandages. Yamaki was wide awake now and he listened pensively to the voices around him. There was one, no, two people in the room, but one was preparing to go.</p><p>" – but I'm sure he's still asleep."</p><p>The fingers holding his hand shifted, absentmindedly stroking the back of his wrist. This speaker was quiet, subdued. His reply was broken. "It…it's okay. I won't wake him up."</p><p>With a sinking feeling, Yamaki recognized the voice, even though his brain was moving at a sluggish pace. <em>Eiji</em>.</p><p>So his brother was here. He hadn't been hearing things, like he'd hoped. Eiji was here, which meant Yawara and Shin were as well. From the sounds of the conversation above him, Eiji had been at the hospital since yesterday. They had come back early, came back to find everything had gone all <em>wrong</em>, everything straight to hell.</p><p>
  <em> This, all of this…is my fault.</em>
</p><p>"I'm sorry we couldn't allow you to see him earlier. But it was important he get more rest."</p><p>"How is he?"</p><p>The unfamiliar voice of the nurse moved away. Someone drew the blinds, closing them with a shush of wood slats. "The doctor expects him to pull through. He should be fine, but he lost a lot of blood. He'll need at least a week, at minimum, to recuperate. The accident damaged his vision."</p><p><em>Wait, what? </em>They were calling it an "accident"?</p><p>"He's blind?" Eiji's voice sounded dazed. From the way his brother paused, Yamaki could almost hear the thought wandering around for a place to connect to. He could feel his brother's fingers go slack around his as the realization finally sank in.</p><p>"Yes." The nurse heaved a sigh. "I don't like being the bearer of bad news, but…"</p><p>"Is it going to be permanent?"</p><p>Footsteps, soft footsteps, padded across the hard floor. "No. Like I said, he'll be fine." A deliberating hesitation. "I'm going to leave you two alone, if that's alright." A pause, as if waiting for a nod. "Okay, I'll be back in a few minutes. If you need any assistance, press the button."</p><p>No answer from his brother, just an inaudible grunt. The nurse left the hospital room, closing the door behind him and leaving the two brothers together. Yamaki closed his useless eyes. It hurt so much to cry that he found he couldn't.</p><p>"I came soon as I heard the news." Eiji said quietly. He didn't appear to realize his audience was awake and listening as he continued, his words disjointed. "I'm sure that you're probably kicking yourself for this..."</p><p>Eiji swallowed.<em><br/></em></p><p>"…but it was an accident. You…you couldn't have done anything to…prevent it."</p><p>Junko wasn't <em>gone</em>, she'd gotten away from that monster. Hadn't she? Yamaki racked his brain, his breath almost catching as he realized he couldn't remember. His blood ran cold as he tried harder to reach into his memory's eye, coming up with nothing each time. A few fragments of sounds, of garbled words and flashes of imagery. His need to know tore at him. Yamaki remembered up to the point where Musyamon attacked. <em>But what happened next? </em></p><p>"I talked with the police. They'll be releasing their press report tonight."</p><p>So then he would find out what happened? No, something wasn't adding up. He didn't care what they said: what about Junko? He remembered seeing her face. The burning tears simmered again but didn't fall.</p><p>It wasn't possible.</p><p>It didn't explain the holes he encountered whenever he tried to recall what happened. This wasn't amnesia, not on any level. It felt too specific, to narrow, to be anything else. But whatever (or whoever) it'd been, they hadn't been very clean or thorough about it, because he knew somehow he would remember it all. But who would believe him? A blind man seeing monsters?</p><p>"- with Yawara. She…well, she doesn't <em>blame </em>you, but..." A shuddering pause. Eiji's voice wavered. "…I guess we just have our own ways of dealing with these sorts of tragedies."</p><p>Another hand laid itself over Yamaki's. Eiji rested his forehead wearily on them. His brother had been crying recently. Yamaki could feel his moist cheeks, still wet with drying tears.</p><p>"She won't talk to me anymore. She won't talk to anyone. It's too soon. I don't think she trusts the eyewitness accounts."</p><p>Witnesses? This was all wrong.</p><p>"…I…guess I don't really trust them either, but they told me that…"</p><p>His brother continued to talk for a while longer, eventually falling silent as he held Yamaki's hand in his and sat there. After a while it was much easier not to say anything at all. Yamaki mulled Eiji's words over slowly. The whole thing (what Yamaki could remember at the moment) seemed…well, for a lack of a better word, planned. Witnesses when he <em>knew</em> there were none,;his hacked-up memory; and the whole thing getting listed as an "accident". But what if it was true? What if he was just searching for excuses, for a scapegoat? It would be all for nothing then.</p><p>But all these suspicions had already struck a cord in him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 11:11 AM</em>
</p><p>"<em>Summon</em>!"</p><p>Musyamon's saber flicked up casually. An expert twist of the wrist and the burst of fire deflected off the blade and into the pavement. The armored Champion was eerily silent as he fought with single-minded tenacity.</p><p>They had been fighting for a while and he still breathed easily, taking his time. The blade gleamed silver as the monster flipped the hilt around so he held it in a different grip. Impmon was already staggering doggedly out of the way as he swept the sword about in a broad arc, his muscled arm bulging.</p><p>"<em>Violent Dismissal</em>!"</p><p>Yamaki shielded Junko with his body as the attack hit the storefront several meters away. It exploded violently outward with a powder-fine shower of glass and brick, the white energy of the attack still winking with sparks. As soon as the blast subsided, Yamaki was already pulling his niece onto her feet and running again, half-carrying her in his arms.</p><p>He glanced over his shoulder. Behind him, Impmon was lobbing a hurricane of fireballs at Musyamon. They had practically no effect, sparking out as soon as they came into contact with the monster's thick hide. The towering Digimon bunched his shoulders, well protected by his red armor and taking whatever Impmon threw at him.</p><p>Was he distracted? Would they get away?</p><p><em>No</em>. Musyamon was suddenly looking straight at him with those burning amber eyes, completely ignoring Impmon for the moment. They wouldn't get away. Not as long as that monster was still moving. Despite how far he ran way from the battle, it always seemed to follow. He sucked in a shaking breath. Musyamon made sure they wouldn't get away by bringing the fight to them.</p><p>Impmon was only a minor obstacle. Nothing more.</p><p>"<em>Bada Boom</em>!"</p><p>"<em>Impmon</em>!" Junko cried, her hands reaching around Yamaki toward her partner. The six-year old squirmed in his arms. "H-he needs help!"</p><p>"<em>Violent Dismissal</em>!"</p><p>There was a buzzing whine behind Yamaki. Some forgotten instinct dropped him quickly to his knees in a duck. Something rocketed over his head, singeing in its blistering heat as it passed harmlessly over the two. Yamaki rolled over painfully, getting to his feet as Junko tried to choke back her racking sobs. Not now. Couldn't stop running. Not until they were safe. Not until Junko was safe. He didn't care about himself.</p><p>"Hey, jerk, I'm over here!" Impmon bellowed at Musyamon. He revealed his tiny fangs in a snarl, shaking his fist. "Fight <em>me</em>, you overgrown coward!"</p><p>For a second, Yamaki thought he saw annoyance cross the monster's face. But it was gone, instantly concealed as Musyamon turned. Before Impmon had any time to react, the Champion's stance abruptly shifted. He was upon his opponent in a flash. His sword crashed down. Impmon barely managed to dive away. He rolled onto his feet. A low slash of the blade forced Impmon to weave under the blow. The weapon clipped his ears as it suddenly reversed direction and came sweeping back.</p><p>Impmon was forced away from the two humans, his paws glowing an unearthly red as he went back a step. And then another.</p><p>"<em>Bada Boom</em>!"</p><p>Musyamon easily blocked the fireball with the flat of his blade. Tongues of fire licked around his saber as he twisted the pommel around to fit his grip again, starting to step forward. He was taken by surprise as Impmon immediately followed up with another attack.</p><p>For a moment, Impmon was <em>sure </em>he'd done some real damage. But that thought quickly died away as Musyamon shook his helmet, unharmed - save for a small, bloodless gash under his chin, he was unhurt. Impmon looked over helplessly at the two humans not too far away from where the two Digimon fought, the tall one was still getting to his feet. Impmon started to shout an order at them:</p><p>"Hurry up an–"</p><p>Yamaki looked up sharply as Impmon's voice cut off, Junko in his arms frozen in shock as she took in the sight before her. Impmon was suspended in the air by an invisible hand, squirming as Musyamon approached him. The tip of his sword, extended before him, was pointed at the other Digimon. When it moved, the helpless Rookie bobbled in the air. A twitch of the blade; Impmon swayed in response. But the monster's attention was held, for the time being, as he turned to deal with his prisoner.</p><p>Again, Yamaki began to run, ignoring the way his legs trembled in protest under him and forcing his body stumbling forward. Junko was crying in his ear, something about turning back for Impmon.</p><p>They couldn't stop.</p><p>Yamaki glanced over his shoulder. Musyamon had reached Impmon, his mouth moving as he said something to the Digimon still held in his telekinetic grasp.</p><p><em> "</em>Defeat has shown her smile on you. Accept it<em>." </em>Not even worth the honor of deletion.</p><p>Without another word, Musyamon drew back his saber and struck. Junko wailed, her fingers digging into her uncle's arm as Musyamon swatted the Rookie away. The force of the blow sent Impmon flying to the side. His small body hit the ground with a <em>thud</em> and slid out of view as the fog of the digital field closed in. Yamaki's teeth set. Impmon was gone, possibly dead, and he couldn't expect any more help from the Digimon. It was just him now. He was all that was left between his niece and that <em>monster</em>.</p><p>Musyamon was on their tail now, the armored beast moving much faster than Yamaki would've believed possible. He wasn't even out of breath from the battle, running easily after his prey with a loping gait. His own breaths rattling hollowly in the back of his throat, Yamaki forced himself to go faster. He was going to protect Junko, no matter the cost. His niece clung to him for dear life, her small face buried into his chest. The mist-shrouded storefronts swept past as he ran.</p><p>"<em>Dismissal Blade</em>!"</p><p>Acting once again on his instincts, Yamaki dived to the right, falling onto his back to avoid injuring his niece. He hastily rolled onto his side, curling up around Junko as he cringed at the deafening buzz. The loud whine screamed through the air as it shivered under the pure energy. Only a few feet away from him the pavement exploded into a smoking crater, sending chips of concrete zipping through the haze. Several cut into his back and nicked him through his coat. One came dangerously closing to taking out an eye, tearing a bleeding gash above his eyebrow.</p><p>Yamaki staggered to his feet, clasping his niece his body. Blood started to dribble into his eye.</p><p>Musyamon was still coming.</p><p>The figure of the Champion loomed above him, his gray face ghastly as it peered down at the humans through the cloud. For some reason, Musyamon was as still as stone, his huge saber resting on his shoulder as his acid-gaze fixed on them. Junko whimpered she peeked fearfully at Musyamon. Without the monster's attention on something else, both could feel the full force of his presence: his menacing aura alone was forcing Yamaki to take a step backward, the sense of pure <em>hatred </em>and the desire to kill.</p><p>With a feeling of horror, Yamaki watched as the large blade was lifted from its resting place, Musyamon taking a step forward. A smile revealed stumped, yellowed fangs.</p><p>"Twice I have sought to obliterate you from this plane of existence, and twice you have escaped my Violent Dismissal. You have good reflexes, human. It is almost...commendable."</p><p>Yamaki said nothing.</p><p>"However, those alone won't save the little one." The hunched shoulders, rolling with thick bands of powerful muscle under the gray hide, straightened with a loud <em>pop </em>of tendons. Musyamon twisted his neck from side to side. "I suggest you leave the little one here: otherwise I will see to your death personally. If you desire to continue living, you will never return to this place. My advice to you, human, is to save yourself. "</p><p>Yamaki didn't pretend to know what was going on in that alien brain but what he said next clearly wasn't what the monster was waiting for. The Digimon's face was taken aback as he spoke up. It was a simple, brief reply, just one short word. But it spoke volumes:</p><p>"No."</p><p>"What do you mean, 'no'?" Musyamon hesitated, his eye ridges rising up in an almost human gesture. For a brief moment, he looked almost unsure of this, but he quickly regained his composure. "I will not give you another chance. You will find my kinda are rarely so merciful." The sword tapped its point on the cracked surface of the pavement. "I see you have no weapons, nor armor. You are defenseless, as is the little one. At this range, I won't miss. Why do you resist?"</p><p>Junko shivered with fear in her uncle's arms. Yamaki was scared out of his wits – who <em>wouldn't</em>? – but he couldn't help but feel resolved to resist any way he could. Maybe if he could keep the monster busy (if even for a few minutes), maybe Junko could get away. It was true he didn't have any weapons whatsoever, but as long as he kept a good distance between himself and that <em>thing</em>, he might be ably to buy some time.</p><p>A gravelly <em>why</em>. Why? Why, why, why?</p><p>Why? "Because that's the most I can do now."</p><p>A snort. It was the human's own decision to seal his fate then! If the piddling creature regretted it later, Musyamon wouldn't be held responsible. "Do you have any last words?"</p><p>"Not to you," Yamaki snapped back with far more fearlessness than he actually felt. Junko looked up at him, pleading silently for him to make it all go away, to make everything better. Yamaki tried to smile comfortingly at Junko. "I want you to run to the nearest police station, okay? Or anywhere with a lot of people; it doesn't matter. Just run as fast as you can."</p><p>Junko sniffled, clutching at him. He repeated it again – he had a feeling she wasn't absorbing the information. After the third time, she gave a dazed nod. Yes, she would run. To where? To a place with a lot of people, she stammered. Good. Don't stop until you're in a crowd: don't forget. You're a good girl, Jun-Jun. Now, please stop crying, you're going to have to be strong. …Okay.</p><p>Junko rubbed at her eyes. Yamaki glanced up at Musyamon. The armored brute watched them with those freaky eyes. It looked like he hadn't heard a word of their exchange. And he was counting on the fact he didn't believe that the Digimon would come after Junko until he was done with the pesky adult. After all, that was the "honorable" thing to do. Kneeling, Yamaki set his niece on the misty ground.</p><p>"Better get started, Junko. You're going to be okay."</p><p>That was the first lie he told her. And it was the last.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Tuesday, Time Unknown</em>
</p><p>"It's almost ten, Yamaki." The nurse's voice crossed the room, pausing at his bedside. "Do you want me to turn on the TV?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>The footsteps shuffled toward the far end of the room, and, with a click of the remote, turned on the TV. Yamaki couldn't see the screen, but he could certainly hear the TV's almost silent "hiss" even through the disembodied voices and sounds that floated around the endless darkness. The nurse set the remote down next him. "How's that?"</p><p>"It's fine," Yamaki said quietly. Since Eiji left awhile ago, he'd been allowed to sit up a little, resting his back against the uncomfortable, crinkling pillows. They still wouldn't let him get out of the bed or take off the bandages. A few more days, and you can take them off, the doctor told him. But when that happened, he couldn't (mustn't) let his eyes come into contact with direct light, whether it was from the sun or anything else. He could either keep the bandages on or find something else to prevent direct exposure. His body would have to do the rest – he could expect his sight to return in a few months, at best.</p><p>"I'll be right down the hall if you need me."</p><p>The voice bustled around him, beyond the cover of the bandages. She was plainly comfortable in her patient's silence, chattering to fill in the gap.</p><p>"In my opinion, I'm amazed that no one else was hurt!"</p><p>Yamaki said nothing in reply. In fact, he'd rather the woman take the hint and <em>leave</em>, because he wanted to be alone at the moment.</p><p>"Big fluke, you know? Area's usually crawling with people."</p><p>"It wasn't then."</p><p>A loud pop of gum. "Yeah, I know. That's just the thing." Another pop. "Anyway, the doctor told me to keep an eye on you. If you need anything, just give me a shout." She was sure that this patient wasn't going to need it though. It didn't look like he was the troublemaker type. After all, he'd barely said anything longer than three words, and she found it just incredible how calm he was. It was easy to mistake it for passivity. She continued, "I'm sure you'll recover fast."</p><p>Muttering something about finishing her rounds, the nurse finally closed the door behind her. The TV, before a background noise, became louder now that Yamaki had turned his full attention to it.</p><p>"Good evening, Shinjuku! It's a lovely night for all of Tokyo!"</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Sunday, 11:34 AM</em>
</p><p>Yamaki couldn't breathe.</p><p>He was choking, invisible hands around his throat. Spots danced before his eyes. The young man was pressed against the wall of a store, fighting to breathe. He couldn't keep this up, not if he couldn't even get close enough to Musyamon to <em>do</em> anything. His legs threatening to give out under him. The dull roaring sound in his ears increased. He had to...had to resist this.</p><p>When Yamaki finally turned to face Musyamon, he knew he was probably going to die. He knew he couldn't do anything to him, he'd already seen the monster's telekinesis. When he felt his weight start shifting upward – as if something unseen was straining to pick him up – he angrily convinced himself that he wasn't going anywhere. <em>He</em> wasn't going to go down so easily. Yamaki hadn't expected anything from this mental refusal to submit, but something had happened. He'd dropped to his feet as the grip had abruptly loosened, almost as if the monster was startled at the human's defiance. If he slipped, if he began to <em>believe</em>, just for a moment, that Musyamon was really strangling him, he was going to pass out. His mind was already considering the idea of shutting down. Passing out seemed like a good idea.</p><p>And then it would have been all for nothing. Yamaki had to keep disbelieving, at least until Musyamon started to resort to physical attacks. Stars burst as the pain in his head, in his <em>being</em>, peaked and threatened to burst.</p><p>"No!"</p><p>The stranglehold fell away at Yamaki's hoarse moan. He staggered, leaning on the wall for support. His head throbbed.</p><p>"Persistent for one of your species," Musyamon remarked. He didn't sounded pleased. "Didn't think you had it in you. Stronger than average Will. It must run in your family."</p><p>Yamaki didn't reply, too busy gasping for breath. A thin trail of blood trickled from his nose.</p><p>Musyamon's acid gaze drifted past his prey onto something else beyond Yamaki's field of vision, then flicked expressionlessly back onto him. "A nice ploy. A last resort that might have worked." The lips quirked in amusement. "But I don't intend to let the little one escape while I deal with you."</p><p>Musyamon lowered his blade. For a moment, Yamaki felt the invisible threads of the monster's telekinetic grip fade away and, stupidly, he relaxed. His eyes flared open, startled, as the monster was suddenly in front of him, the huge boy towering over him and casting its deep shadow on him. One of the Digimon's claws was suddenly around his tortured neck. The eyes narrowed at him, and, with a growl, Musyamon slammed him into the wall. Yamaki felt the back of his head make contact with the brick.</p><p>Everything become a meaningless jumble.</p><p>He wasn't altogether sure what happened next. He didn't think he passed out, but he couldn't recall the last few minutes. He was aware of being surprised, some sort of struggle as the invisible hands took hold of him, confusion and then he was suddenly <em>here</em>, pinned against a different building.</p><p>Yamaki fought to break free of the white snow threatening to send him spiraling into unconsciousness. Ignore the dizziness. The blood, as well, that he could feel matting his hair. Ignore it. Get up. Break free. But his brain moved at a snail's pace, and, his eyes opening, it took a while for his sluggish mind to make sense of the scene before him.</p><p>He was pinned up against a window of a storefront, so rattled by the blow he couldn't shake off the telekinesis keeping him trapped against the glass. Before him, Musyamon was crossing his blurring field of vision, his sword drawn as the huge, man-like creature advanced on something. Turning his head to see what it was, Yamaki almost passed out again in the process.</p><p>Junko backed away from Musyamon. But…now she looked helplessly at Yamaki, her eyes wavering with tears. Her uncle would come to her rescue, just like always, he would make it all better, wouldn't he? Junko's s dark clothing stood out in the mist, and, Yamaki realized dazedly, made her stand out like a target. He struggled to free himself: more stars and the pain driving into his skull like a knife.</p><p>Musyamon turned toward him. For a moment, the Champion's golden eyes were blank.</p><p>He smiled.</p><p>With a jolt, Yamaki knew what the Digimon was going to do, his exhausted mind open to the images the monster was "sending"; he would force him to witness the slaughter of his niece, finish the other human off when he deemed fit and not before. Horrified, Yamaki watched, wide-eyed, as the saber changed grips, this to one he hadn't seen before. Musyamon's steps widened as the distance between Junko and the monster closed. Yamaki thrashed, oblivious to the circles of pain leaping up into his vision as he screamed.</p><p>"<em>No</em>!"</p><p>Junko kept backing away, but there was nowhere to run.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>"It's a beautiful night."</em>
</p><p><em>"It sure is." </em>A shuffle of papers.<em> "But now to the news. Two days ago there was an explosion near…"</em></p><p>
  <em>"…Shinjuku. Luckily, injuries were low…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"…one dead or missing, one wounded…"</em>
</p><p>It was all starting to come back to him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Junko!" Yamaki screamed.</p><p>Blocking out his own pain, he focused all his strength into breaking free. He <em>wasn't</em> tied down, he couldn't be. His muscles strained against unseen bonds, aching with the effort. Blood dripped into his eyes, down the bridge of his nose as he leaned his body forward and threw his weight out, struggling furiously. "<em>Junko</em>!"</p><p>His world folded in on itself, he couldn't see, he hurt everywhere, but there was his niece, no no no no…</p><p>Musyamon glanced lazily over at his captive, one eye-ridge rising as he fixed on the human. It looked like he was doing the stupid thing and actually trying to get free – foolish, really. Even if he did fight off the Champion's mental grip with his Will, he wouldn't reach the little one in time. It puzzled the Digimon to no end. Why waste one's time when the last few moments of life should be savored? The whole thing was beyond his understanding, he decided and he turned his attention back on his target. Best to get this over with.</p><p>After all, it was the least he could do.</p><p>"Junko!"</p><p>It was too late. The blade came screaming forward as charged with whining energy, Musyamon's huge arms bulging as he began his final attack.</p><p>"<em>White Bird Blade</em>!"</p><p>Junko stumbling backward, holding her small hands over her eyes in an attempt to blot everything out of sight. Her scream was lost in the shriek from the Digimon's saber, her dark clothes becoming bleached from the approaching burst of power. Black to gray and finally to a ghostly white as the light descended on the six-year old. With a hoarse shout, Yamaki burst free of the restraints. Even as he staggered forward, he was already scrambling to get between Junko and the deadly beam, trying to move as quickly as he could.</p><p>"<em>Uncle Yama</em>!"</p><p>Junko vanished into the shrill calls of the falcon-shaped beam, the very sky lit up by the blast. The air before him flared a blinding white. His eyes involuntarily shut against the burn -</p><p>
  <em>"…the local authorities have released their press report…"</em>
</p><p>White. So much white, searing his eyes. Rushing wind whipped at him like a hurricane.</p><p>
  <em> "…at 11:30 AM, there was an acetylene explosion…"</em>
</p><p>Too much noise. Too much light. Yamaki's own desperate shout was swallowed up by the explosion and suddenly he was lifted off his feet and flying, flying…</p><p>
  <em> "…most likely an accident, according to the chief of police. Damages have been estimated at…"</em>
</p><p>…backwards. A vague sensation of hitting something – a window – and smashing through it. Sharp trails of agony raced up and down his arms as shards became lodged into his skin, others bouncing off as they shattered from the frame. The energy of the blast tore around him, shredding everything, destroying anything.</p><p>All he knew was pain as he finally hit the floor of the building.</p><p>And then nothing.</p><p>
  <em> "…yen…the canisters were located in…Mikimoto's…the owner expects…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em> "…Really just a miracle… it wasn't crowded…"</em>
</p><p>Yamaki was slowly being smothered to death.</p><p>
  <em> "…Ah! The chief of police has finished his interview now and…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em> "…The victims were a young girl and a man in his mid-twenties…"</em>
</p><p>It wasn't from the rubble either…so…</p><p>
  <em> "…So sad…but I suppose people can be careless…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em> "…I agree…it's very sad…"</em>
</p><p>Invisible claws were around his throat, lifting his bleeding body up from the debris...</p><p>
  <em>"In East Shinjuku…"</em>
</p><p>Silence. And then the throttling grip slowed as footsteps approached, so loud in his barely conscious ears.</p><p>"V-Vajramon! I…forgive me, my lord. I did not recognize you in that other form."</p><p>He couldn't move his limbs. Whatever the beast called it, "Will" or whatever, wasn't there.</p><p>"The beard and human body was necessary for the execution of the mission. And the humans here wouldn't accept me as Vajramon." A sound of mild disgust; the human voice, so <em>normal</em>, stooped down next to Yamaki. "Is the girl taken care of?"</p><p>"Yes, my lord."</p><p>"And her Digimon?"</p><p>"Not worth the effort. I found I could not bestow the honor of deletion on him. He wasn't like the others."</p><p>"Very well. He'll be tabled for now. No, don't start apologizing. Sometimes one needs to get his own hands into affairs to see they're finished properly."</p><p>"Yes, my lord." The choking grip around Yamaki's neck tightened. "What shall I do about this one?"</p><p>A deliberating silence.</p><p>"Leave him for now. I have a feeling he might be of some use to our cause."</p><p>Yamaki hardly felt himself drop to the ground.</p><p>"This should set an example, I think. As if the first humans weren't enough."</p><p>"Perhaps it takes some time for the lesson to sink through, my lord."</p><p>"Most likely. I'll see to it this is all cleaned up. Rather big mess you left."</p><p>"My deepest apologies."</p><p>Silence, something moving about. The human voice, somewhere above the curtain of pain and darkness, was talking into a cell phone.</p><p>"Bring a squad to clean this up, I want this to look like an accident. Right…yes, that too. No, low casualties, as planned. Right….right. Yes, go ahead." The toe of a boot roughly dug into Yamaki's torn side, prodding the limp human. No reaction. "Pick some of your men to be witnesses. I'll give you a story for them to memorize, but make sure they differ a little bit. It would look suspicious if all of their facts were the same. As soon as you've finished, call the paramedics…No…no, that's not an option. Be here in five minutes. Any slower isn't acceptable."</p><p><em>Click</em>.</p><p>"Are you sure we should leave this one alive, my lord? He could reveal your position. He saw you."</p><p>A laugh through the deepening darkness. "By telling everyone that he saw a monster? That would be a disappointing reaction. I'm counting on something else."</p><p>"…I see," a puzzled grunt.</p><p>Yamaki couldn't see, could barely hear. He felt his blood, felt it trickling out of him into the dusty ground. There seemed to be so much of it. How much did he have in his body anyway?</p><p>"I'll see to this. Go. You've carried out your service. Your slate is now clean."</p><p>Dizzy…light-headed…</p><p>"Yes, my lord." Plodding footsteps away.</p><p>"You royally messed things up," the boot nudged Yamaki non-too gently in the stomach. "But do me a favor and live."</p><p>Yamaki slipped back into unconsciousness again.</p><p>"I look forward to seeing you driven with revenge."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>His head was <em>killing</em> him. As if an angry Allomon decided to take residence between his ears. <em>My head…</em>Squeezing his eyes shut, Impmon rubbed at his battered forehead with his paws. His ears rang as he sat up, and promptly hit his head on a branch overhead. Biting down a curse, the Rookie hit the offending branch, but failed to get any reaction from it. And his head <em>still</em> hurt!</p><p>Impmon crawled forward, careful this time of the bush. It came to his notice that the ringing sound wasn't in his ears, although it was definitely close. It looked like a bunch of red and white boxes on wheels – <em>cars?</em> – were approaching the street, lights flickering as a siren wailed. Impmon clapped his paws over his ears in attempt to muffle the siren. He watched in morbid fascination as they came to a stop and a bunch of two-legged figures piled out – <em>humans</em> – and began bustling about the area, which, he suddenly noticed was in real bad shape.</p><p>A mental whistle. <em>You'd think a bomb woulda went off here or something...</em></p><p>"Hey, there's someone over here!"</p><p>Impmon crept closer, careful to remain hidden. One of the humans knelt within the wreckage of a store (the front was completely missing, demolished from some sort of blast), and waving energetically at her friends. Two ran over with a stretcher. It seemed the others were attacking a fire with a big water hose. <em>What's goin' on? </em>He couldn't help but wonder when this all happened. He thought he would've noticed buildings getting blown up this close by. It was with mild interest that he watched the humans carefully put another human on the stretcher, the man's blond hair matted with drying blood.</p><p><em>What's this feeling?</em> Impmon's eyes narrowed in confusion. Needles blossomed in his head now as he focused on the unconscious human.</p><p>It seemed like he might've been someone he met, but any ah-ha moments were met by a solid wall of throbbing pain. He clutched at his head as he came to a conclusion: humans were a cause of this. It was in his best interests to avoid them if he could, because if he came face to face with one – <em>a young girl laughing</em> – he would probably regret it. Impmon began backing away from the street. In fact, now seemed like a good time to start.</p><p>Impmon crawled away from his hiding place, unnoticed by the paramedics and the firefighters. Lost in a frightening city filled with uncaring humans, he would end up wandering for four years without any memory of his Tamer and the positive emotions he'd felt in her presence.</p><p>As far as he concerned, humans were just bad news.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Today they let Yamaki get out of that damned bed. He'd made enough of a fuss about it for the past week and a half, but for some reason the hospital staff treated him like he was made out of china.</p><p>It had been that long since he'd first found himself here and Yamaki was quickly getting tired of it. Today couldn't come fast enough. Yamaki wanted to get used to moving without his eyes: his mind's gears were working and he was already starting to formulate a plan. One that even Eiji might have been proud of.</p><p>Well, if he was here. Maybe. Eiji hadn't visited again. Yamaki couldn't blame him.</p><p>With a sigh, Yamaki sat on the edge of the bed. Groping about, he found the sidebars and pushed himself up until he was standing on shaky legs. It pissed him off to no end to find his body hadn't been keeping up with his brain. He'd remembered more of what happened that day, his mind dancing from one idea to another, putting two and two together, calculating, sometimes smoldering with rage and sorrow as he remembered more and more. He had to do something.</p><p>That, unfortunately, started with learning how to walk on his own.</p><p>Staggering forward, Yamaki felt along the walls, following them until he felt the glass of the shut window. He eventually found the lock and pulled the window open. Even through the bandages they changed daily, he could still feel the warmth of the afternoon sunlight pouring in.</p><p>In fact, he was so occupied with the touch of the fresh air that he didn't hear the door open. He jumped when someone knocked on the wall, whirling around automaticaly.</p><p>"May I come in?"</p><p>Yamaki frowned. God, he hated this, having to figure out just <em>where</em> the visitor stood. If he didn't keep talking, Yamaki would lose track of the man. He still had to work on using his other senses, now that sight was out of the picture. Considering the fact he didn't recognize the speaker as someone he intimately knew (the voice sounded mildly familiar, if anything), he didn't feel the need to give a response.</p><p>With a shrug, he went about locating a chair, straining to place this newcomer.</p><p>"My most heartfelt apologies concerning the accident."</p><p>Finally finding the chair, Yamaki sat down. He winced as pain shot through his body. The speaker moved around the bed now as he spoke. "My name is Ataru Nagamora."</p><p>"It sounds like you know who I am," Yamaki replied. He briefly considered shutting the window and drawing the blinds. It was the only way he could take off the bandages. Considering how hard it had been to get to the window, he decided against it. Yamaki faced the general direction he thought his visitor was, his mouth set. "I thought they didn't allow visitors after a certain point," he remarked.</p><p>"They made an exception for me," Nagamora's indistinct voice said in return.</p><p>"Don't think I've met you before," Yamaki said. He really didn't want to be in anyone's company right now, much less that of a stranger. In fact, he'd rather not talk to anyone, if he had a choice.</p><p>"Actually, you have, but I guess most people forget my face easily. It's not exactly memorable."</p><p>Christ, he hoped this wasn't someone from his job. Yamaki couldn't even think about working right now, going back to everything like nothing happened.<em><br/></em></p><p>"Oh." Yamaki turned his face down, rubbing at the gauze around his arms absentmindedly. According to the doctor, he could take those off soon, but because of the damage, he would probably have a bunch of scars there. They itched underneath the cloth. "I don't suppose you came here to chit-chat, Nagamora," he didn't bother being polite. "Get to the point."</p><p>"You're awfully calm, considering your niece died recently."</p><p>Yamaki tried to aim a murderous glare at the man without a face. "How I feel isn't any of your business." Far as he was concerned, this wasn't over. Musyamon was out there and Yamaki planned to get him. Yamaki bit the inside of his cheek. He had to be calm<em>. </em>If he didn't, he wasn't sure he could keep himself together. "And I don't believe <em>that</em>," he found he started to choke up on saying Junko's name, "has anything to do with you."</p><p>Nagamora only chuckled, unfazed. "True. I didn't come here to bring up some, ah, unpleasant memories."</p><p>
  <em> Memories? Bull. I saw her die right in front of me, vaporized to nothing – and you reduce her to a "memory"?</em>
</p><p>Yamaki angrily pushed himself to his feet, careful to keep the unsteady waver in his legs to a minimum. He didn't have to put up with this asshole, this pretentious jerk who got on his nerves that much more because he seemed so <em>normal</em>. "Well? Talk or get out of my room."</p><p>"It's really a gesture of goodwill, but I think I might be of some use to you in the future," Nagamora answered, unhurried. "I'll leave you my card, but you should contact me when you're in need of my services. Then and only then."</p><p>Yamaki was suddenly tired from dealing with Nagamora and just wished him gone, rubbing at his temples. He didn't turn around as his visitor made a motion to leave. Nagamora's footsteps reached the door.</p><p>"Accidents don't just 'happen'. It's always cause and effect – and this cause, I believe, was of a digital nature. Goodbye, Yamaki."</p><p>Yamaki spun around at this last comment, but Nagamora was already gone.</p><p>He leaned against the window, astonished, and slowly slid down to the floor. This…this wasn't what he'd been expecting. Someone <em>knew</em> about these monsters, it wasn't just him! This changed everything. The room cooled as the evening deepened, casting the room in a darkness he couldn't see. <em>Others know of </em><em>Digimon. </em>He hadn't thought of that. If others knew, then maybe… Yamaki wasn't by himself. He could find others.</p><p><em> It's still my fault.</em> Junko was dead because of him. He hadn't done enough to prevent it from happening. His hesitation cost her and everyone else, her parents, her brother: now an only child.</p><p>There hadn't even been anything left of his niece after the attack. Yamaki drew his legs up to his stomach, his chest heaving silently with tears that wouldn't come but burned at his damaged eyes. <em>It should've been me, not her.</em> But he was alive, and it was more and more painful the more he thought about it now.<em> I should be dead.</em></p><p>
  <em> I could've been. But I was spared…</em>
</p><p>Junko hadn't been spared. Neither had Impmon.</p><p><em>…Impmon</em>. Part of his anger suddenly found a place to latch onto. Impmon had a part to play in this as well, he'd failed too. Useless, completely useless! Yamaki hadn't been able to do anything, but Impmon had that power. He hadn't used it, he'd let Junko down like Yamaki had. It didn't matter where Impmon was now, if he was even alive. Nothing mattered, except that Yamaki had failed in his duties. Junko was dead. It was horrifying to recall the incident, the accident-that-wasn't.</p><p>
  <em>"Leave him for now. I have a feeling that he might be of some use to our cause."</em>
</p><p>Yamaki wasn't even worth the bother.<em><br/></em></p><p>
  <em> "Do me a favor and live."</em>
</p><p>He was going to be used by these creatures.<em><br/></em></p><p>Yamaki's fingers tightened around his knee. No. The shame and anger would always follow him as long as he lived the life he didn't deserve in the first place, but he wouldn't give in so easily. No, he wouldn't roll over, he decided, not to these <em>murderers</em>. There was nothing else to look forward. Not his job, not Yayoi, nor his unsupportive family or his brother. There was nothing else to lose.</p><p>
  <em>Why was I spared? There must have been a reason.</em>
</p><p>Something had to done, something to pay those monsters, those Digimon back in full. To punish them all for what they did to her. He was still at fault, so very guilty…but he would have a purpose now. H<em>e </em>would hunt them down just like they came after his niece; he would get stop them before it would happen to someone else.</p><p>
  <em> My guilt, this shame…this won't be a penance. This will be revenge.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I'll destroy them all.</em>
</p><p><strong>Fin</strong><br/>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. He Who Cried Wolf</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Kincaid and Nagamora discuss their plans for the Real World. Meanwhile, Jenrya meets Ryo Akiyama, a mysterious, sarcastic boy who claims he's been to the Digital World. </p><p>The Juggernaut introduces its new avatar to its companion system, Takato Matsuda. The merge between the two begins.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(He Who Cried Wolf)</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> "Jenrya…"</em>
</p><p>A voice, wandering just out of reach.</p><p>
  <em>"Jenrya, come here."</em>
</p><p>Why?</p><p>
  <em> "Come. Share."</em>
</p><p>Who?</p><p>
  <em> "You're too far away."</em>
</p><p>Takato?</p><p>
  <em>"Please come here, Jenrya. Please? I can't see you from here."</em>
</p><p>So...cold, so emotionless. Weirdly familiar, the voice was hypnotizing. Jenrya wasn't quite aware of what he was doing as he got out of bed, his gray eyes glazing over as he stumbled over to the computer, its monitor glowing an eerie green and throbbing in time with the "words".</p><p>Drawn to it, Jenrya blindly sat down in his chair, face blank as he stared intently at the screen.</p><p>
  <em> "I need to see you. Come closer."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</em>
</p><p>Yamaki muffled a yawn.</p><p>This early in the morning, most of Hypnos's personnel hadn't arrived yet. Those that did were trying frantically to wake up as their boss strode past. At this ungodly hour, when it was still dark outside, he didn't really care how unprofessional they looked. When he'd contacted Nagamora a few years ago, he hadn't been expecting these early meetings the man kept springing on him, otherwise he might've thought twice about the deal. Well, he would've said yes no matter what, still.</p><p>Yamaki his way through still-dark corridors. Although he recovered his sight a couple of years ago, he found he was still comfortable with moving in the dark. After all, he'd gotten so used to it that it was hard to shake the habit of relying on senses other than sight, even when it wasn't necessary anymore. Besides, he knew this building up and down. From the innocent offices on the top floors, the lobby and the elevators that would only travel to certain levels (as protection against people wandering in on Hypnos), all the way down to the Yuggoth chamber.</p><p>Yamaki let himself into the conference room, his stride hesitating only for a moment when he noticed Nagamora wasn't alone. The man reclined in one of the chairs around the black marble desk, a woman at his side. Yamaki raised an eyebrow at this, his expression hidden behind the safety of his sunglasses. What was <em>Kincaid</em> doing here? He kept his mouth shut. Right, Kincaid was originally one of Nagamora's staff, so he'd probably called upon her services again.</p><p>Yamaki sat down across from Nagamora. "Well?"</p><p>Nagamora held out his hand. Kincaid handed several folders to him, the woman stepping backward discreetly. Laying the folders out before him, he slid one to Yamaki, lacing his fingers together.</p><p>"These are the reports concerning Hypnos's progress and that," he motioned at the papers Yamaki inspected, "is the details of our branches."</p><p>"Hard to believe you're having financial trouble," Yamaki remarked. Behind the sunglasses, his eyes scanned the packets. Everything had been doctored almost to perfection, as expected, but he wasn't fooled and Nagamora already knew that. This was really just his sponsor's strange way of exchanging pleasantries. "But this isn't what you wanted to talk to me about."</p><p>"Of course not. These are merely minor details." Nagamora adjusted his glasses, pushing them up the bridge of his nose. "Actually, I'm a bit curious about several things, one of them concerning you." The mild-mannered man gave a little half-smile. "If you don't mind."</p><p>"Not at all."</p><p>Nagamora leaned back, regarding Yamaki. "For the most part, we have worked on good terms with each other. I contacted you four years ago, after doing some…ah, research." Nagamora accepted the cup of coffee Kincaid offered him, sipping it as Yamaki his cup.</p><p>"I know."</p><p>"I noticed you changed your name."</p><p>A shrug. Why bring this up? A name was a name. It didn't mean anything to Nagamora. "I did."</p><p>"And your personal records seem to have mysteriously disappeared." This time there was a hint of amusement in the older man's voice.</p><p>"It's annoying when people keep taking peeks at who I was," Yamaki said. He was uncomfortable with the idea of someone stumbling across them; after all, there was enough about him there to uncover Hypnos – if one dug deep enough – and it was easier just to get rid of them. "I prefer to remain anonymous, if possible."</p><p>"I see," Nagamora chuckled. He fiddled with the ring around his middle finger, touching the strange designs carved into it, and glancing askance at Kincaid. "I was just wondering about that."</p><p>Yamaki deigned not to give any response. Without asking, he lit a cigarette, watching silently as his sponsor sipped his coffee. He then set it down, smiling with an almost fatherly expression. "It's been what, four, five years?"</p><p>God, not this again. "Four," Yamaki answered tersely.</p><p>"And you're still dedicated to your goal."</p><p>"Yes."</p><p>"That's good to hear," Nagamora took another sip, gesturing at the files laid out on the table. "Regarding the Juggernaut. We'll unseal it in a few months but there might be a few…technical difficulties. Nothing serious. Kincaid here tells me that without the constant maintenance of its tech crew, the system will probably need to be adjusted. It should take a day or two, nothing to worry about."</p><p>"Fine." Yamaki wasn't sure what to make of this. <em>Something</em> wasn't quite right, but right now he couldn't put his finger on the specific details. Just a gut feeling. A quick glance at the Hypnos reports: mostly things he already knew and was on top of. Good. It went to show if you wanted to keep something secret, you kept it to yourself. "The Digimon are coming in greater numbers, but Hypnos can handle them. However, I believe I requested some military support, if it became necessary."</p><p>Nagamora waved the matter away. "Done."</p><p>"Also, concerning some of the employees, there are a number I want off the job. And this time I'm hiring the replacements."</p><p>The corner of Nagamora's mouth twitched, but that was all.</p><p>"Very well."</p><p>Yamaki didn't bring up the kids with the Digimon. Perhaps it was his own experiences with Junko that kept him silent about them, but whatever the reason, he didn't mention them. His trust in Nagamora was already low, despite the help he gave him. Best to have a wild card somewhere in the works. Nagamora conducted the rest of the meeting with his trademark ease, moving along at an unhurried pace. Occasionally he would ask a sensitive question, make a double-sided remark. Yamaki, however, was ready, fending them off, readily taking up arms in this verbal fencing. This went on for about an hour, at which Nagamora glanced at his watch.</p><p>"Ah, it looks like we're done, for the time being." A nod. "Thank you for your cooperation."</p><p>His face carefully expressionless, Yamaki nodded and left, the door shutting behind him. His footsteps gradually faded away, leaving Nagamora and Kincaid alone. With a soft chuckle, Kincaid draped her arms along the head Nagamora's seat, looking down at him. Her partner. It'd been <em>far</em> too long since they could work together like this.</p><p>"Think he knows?"</p><p>Nagamora began cleaning his glasses with a small square of cloth, shrugging. "To some extent, probably. But he's willing to deal with me regardless of his suspicions. He'd deal with the devil if it meant he got what he wanted. And that's all I'm asking for."</p><p>Kincaid seated herself close to her partner, an impish grin on her face. She'd thoroughly enjoyed the exchange between Yamaki and Nagamora, listening with interest as they exchanged veiled barbs. Yamaki was a good opponent for the Founder, she realized. The human apparently had done his own research. <em>Maybe too much.</em> In fact, she had to wonder just how far the his knowledge went. Did he know of the previous human encounters with Digimon, for example? Or did he even know of the role Digimon played now?</p><p>That just made this all the more interesting and she told Nagamora exactly that.</p><p>A throaty laugh. "You haven't changed a bit."</p><p>"A girl's got to entertain herself somehow."</p><p>"You always manage to make a game out of everything."</p><p>"Not <em>everything</em>," Kincaid mock-pouted, gesturing at the ring her companion wore on his finger. "Case in point. Also newsflash: you looked better with horns than glasses."</p><p>"And people would take more notice of me," Nagamora answered dryly. As Founder, it was far more useful to blend into the background, to play the hidden conductor in the orchestra, than to be the war hero he was back home. But he appreciated the gift, more so when he recalled the fact that Kincaid made it for <em>him</em> and him alone. "I never got to thank you."</p><p>"You know I favor you." Kincaid had that same, cheeky expression grin, but it was between equals this time. She would never dare treat Nagamora the way she treated her subordinates. Not only were they equals, but he was also a long-time friend of hers. A partner. Perhaps more than a friend. "Besides, it was nothing."</p><p>"I appreciate your attentions and I <em>think</em> I'm honored. However, returning back to the topic…" Nagamora shook his head, leaning back into the seat. "Yamaki probably knows quite a bit, more than he lets on. I wouldn't be surprised if he knew about the previous Purged children before his niece. Unfortunate mess, that."</p><p>An exaggerated groan. "I remember that. It was such a pain trying to get their partners back on track and actually <em>useful</em>."</p><p>"Humans tend to have that negative effect on their Digimon slaves."</p><p>"When did you suddenly get so observant?"</p><p>"It was obvious watching them during quarantine. Some of them were practically suicidal." Nagamora set his glasses on the spotless surface of the table, his voice reproaching. He didn't even need them, but he found wearing them tended to throw humans off-guard, which was just what he wanted. "But of course that was several years ago. I heard you were going to recommend several of them for the remaining positions of the Line."</p><p>"I planned to nominate Greymon for the Sword, but he went and got himself deleted, so that idea's out the window," Kincaid frowned thoughtfully. "Right now we need the Shield. The Juggernaut will be online soon enough and since I plan to begin the second phase soon, I'd like to start taking care of things ahead of schedule." Her lips pursed as she considered her options.</p><p>"You're going to use Golems for fuel?"</p><p>"It's not like anyone's going to miss them. Besides, they make good vessels and I'm pretty sure they can hold the energy drained from the hosts, at least long enough for them to make a one-way trip to the Juggernaut."</p><p>"There'll be bodies then. Humans get finicky about corpses lying about." Since humans didn't dissolve into data like Digimon did, it was a bit harder to hide any remains. If too many were found dead, then there could be large scale of panic in the city, which would complicate things unnecessarily. The Shield would have to be quite powerful to contain the unavoidable fear, not just maintain a physical barrier. The population would have to stay within the confines of Tokyo if the mission was to succeed. Otherwise the Juggernaut's fuel sources would scatter.</p><p>Otherwise the humans, with their superior numbers, might swarm them if they realized what was really happening.</p><p>"Bah! Leave that to me." Kincaid flapped a gloved hand, smirking.</p><p>"If you insist."</p><p>"Have you no faith in me? You're terrible."</p><p>"Very terrible," Nagamora agreed mildly. Kincaid only shook her head. "No, no, I trust you. Seriously, I do." Getting to his feet, he turned to regard Kincaid. "Although I may have to ask another favor of you."</p><p>The Deceiver raised an eyebrow. "Fire away."</p><p>"Watch Yamaki for me, could you? I can't watch him every day. Although his cooperation is still needed, he could be a potential danger."</p><p>"I'll tell you as soon as I see any signs of trouble," Kincaid assured him. She winked. "Should be easy to take care of him if it comes down to that. After all, he's only human."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Terriermon would sleep in, if he had the choice. <em>Gotta…get up.</em> But the bed was so <em>warm</em>, the comforters just the right amount of comfyness and he wasn't too keen on the idea of dragging himself away. Besides, as soon as he did, he'd probably get jumped by Shuichon and stuffed into another one of those doll dresses. <em>But I promised to wake Jenrya up...</em></p><p>A weary, heroic sigh. The things he did for his partner.</p><p>Rolling over, Terriermon opened his eyes. To his surprise, Jenrya wasn't there sleeping next to him like usual. Did he already get up? Yawning, Terriermon rubbed at his eyes with bunched paws, casting a regretful look back at the bed. <em>Well, no point in snuggling back in. </em>Another sleepy yawn. The Rookie sat up. And promptly blinked in surprise as he saw Jenrya sitting in front of his computer.</p><p>"Uh…Jenrya, we gotta go soon."</p><p>No response.</p><p><em>Oh, so now he's not talking to me? </em>Terriermon huffed. <em>That's not very nice! </em>His human remained sitting where he was, motionless as he stared at the screen. Grumbling, Terriermon hopped down from the bed, making his way toward Jenrya. He'd told him to get him ready and he was keeping that promise. Even if it meant dragging the Tamer to the closet! For crying out-loud, he wasn't even dressed yet. <em>What am I, his babysitter?</em> The Digimon threw up mental paws.</p><p>"Jenrya, I mean it," he raised his voice, scrunching his button nose. Tugging on Jenrya's pant leg, he continued more urgently, "You're going to be late for school!"</p><p>Jenrya started as Terriermon's voice woke him up. Blinking, he glanced down at his partner, then at the computer. The screen was off, the monitor black. For some reason, he must've fallen asleep at his desk; it explained the cramp forming up the base of his spine. Wincing, he got to his feet, smiling sheepishly at Terriermon:</p><p>"Sorry, guess I fell asleep."</p><p>"You sleep like a log. Sheesh," Terriermon grumbled, moving behind him and pushing at his heels. "Get dressed! You know, I coulda been sleeping late, but no-o-o, a certain <em>someone</em> insists I wake him up even though he already <em>has</em> an alarm clock…"</p><p>Jenrya only laughed at this as he pulled a shirt over his head. "But you're so much better than some boring old alarm clock."</p><p>That made Terriermon feel a little better: he couldn't help preening a bit. True, he had lots of perks.</p><p>"And besides, no one can nag like you can."</p><p>"Jenrya!" Terriermon threw a pillow at him. Jenrya ducked the projectile, sticking his tongue out at Terriermon, who began reaching for the nearest weapon with a threatening gesture.</p><p>"Kidding, kidding," Jenrya reached for his orange vest. "Anyway, thanks for waking me up. Nag."</p><p>He dodged the next pillow thrown at him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Good news was, Jenrya didn't get to school late – he still had ten minutes to go as he slid into his assigned seat. Juri watched the door, occasionally glancing at him curiously, wondering where Takato was. Jenrya had told the truth, that he didn't know where he was. It was sad, watching her perking up hopefully whenever the door slid open, even though she tried to look busy: her hand puppet was currently engaged in an energetic conversation with another student. Jenrya sighed, rubbing at his eyes tiredly.</p><p>
  <em>It's been almost a week since I last saw Takato.</em>
</p><p>Mr. Mori stepped into the classroom as the last few kids straggled in, rushing to get to their seats. Once again he called attendance. Once again there was always one missing.</p><p>This wasn't good. His worry for Takato only doubled as the time went by and now he couldn't get a hold of Ruki. Even Renamon was nowhere to be seen. <em>First Takato vanishes and now Ruki.</em> Jenrya wanted to tear his hair out. Why was all of this happening? Why now?</p><p>" - Class, I'm pleased to announce we have a new student."</p><p>Jenrya looked up. A around him, the other kids chattered with each other, wondering what this new student would look like, why he might be arriving so late in the school year. The teacher held his hands up and nodded toward the door.</p><p>"Please welcome Ryo Akiyama, class."</p><p>The door slid open. A tall boy let himself in as the other students turned as one to take a look at this newcomer. Dressed in dark shades of blue and gray, Ryo Akiyama cut an impressive, if not cocky figure. His brown hair was swept back away from his face, cropped no-nonsense short. His black eyes flicked around the room, his lips turned up in a cynical half-grin as he made his way toward the front of the room, coming to a stop at Mr. Mori's desk. Nodding at Ryo, the teacher turned to face his class, glowering until everyone quieted down.</p><p>Ryo leaned against the teacher's desk, crossing his arms over his chest as he grinned at the class. "Ryo Akiyama. Hi. This is the sixth school I've transferred to and will probably be the sixth I'll have transferred out of." He shrugged. "Nice to meet you."</p><p>"….I'm sure you'll fit right in, Ryo," Mr. Mori gestured at the only empty seat available, not sure what to say. "How about you sit next to Jenrya? He can help you if you've got any questions."</p><p>Ryo glanced over at Jenrya. "Sure."</p><p>Jenrya watched, wary, as Ryo wound his way toward him, sauntering toward Takato's unoccupied desk. Reaching it, Ryo plopped himself down in the desk, lounging back as he dumped his backpack onto the floor. He looked perfectly at home. Jenrya turned his attention elsewhere. Maybe it was him, but there was something about this new student. Maybe it was just the kid's attitude…but it was also weird for a student to be transferring so late. Jenrya froze as he noticed that Ryo was looking over at him now. The look he gave was bored, but...held a little too long.</p><p>Jenrya matched his stare with one of his own.</p><p>Mr. Mori was oblivious as he addressed the class. "Since we'll be having an extended weekend coming up, we'll be focusing mostly on group work. I'll assign each group a topic. You'll be presenting it to your classmates at the end of the week. I want this to look good, as well as be informative. Remember, those of you who aren't presenting will take notes on each other's projects – expect a quiz next Wednesday."</p><p>Ryo only rolled his eyes as the rest of the children groaned in protest.</p><p>"I'll be assigning team leaders. They'll pick the groups." The teacher held up a hand before the class exploded into questions. "What they say goes. Now, if you've got questions, I'll be at my desk," Mr. Mori began walking down the aisles, counting off the students. "Form groups of five." Turning about, he surveyed his students. "Alright, very good. Juri, Setsuna, Kyoichi, Haruhiko, Rumiko, and Hitoshi are the team leaders. Go get started."</p><p>Jenrya discreetly watched Ryo, pretending to be absorbed in flipping through his history book. The new guy didn't bother to get to his feet, leaning back lazily as the other students milled about. Apparently he didn't see the point in getting to work, that or just didn't feel like standing up. Jenrya frowned. There was definitely something about him, though the Tamer couldn't place a finger on it. <em>Maybe I'm just being paranoid.</em> Just because Ryo was new didn't mean that -</p><p>"Jenrya."</p><p>He looked up from his book. Juri stood over him, with her usual friendly smile. "Um…since I'm one of the group leaders, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind being a part of my group?"</p><p>Jenrya nodded. "Sure."</p><p>Juri beamed, her hand puppet giving a delighted bark at him before she turned right around and promptly asked Ryo if he wanted to join.</p><p>"Might as well," Ryo grunted, getting to his feet. He towered over Juri, who only reached his shoulder. Shooting an unreadable look at Jenrya, Ryo followed the hand puppet to the corner of the classroom, where the other member – Hirokazu – was zealously protecting a square of four desks pushed together from the other kids. Hirokazu would growl warningly at any kids that tried to run off with one of the desks under his protection.</p><p>He was in the middle of shooing another thief away when Juri approached him with Ryo and Jenrya in tow.</p><p>Hirokazu grinned as the others sat down. "About time you guys came."</p><p>Juri's hand puppet barked, dog head bobbing. "Juri had to get more people for the group, Hirokazu!"</p><p>Ryo leaned back in his desk. "What's this topic Mr. M wants?"</p><p>Hirokazu, looking slightly startled at the lack of respect in the Ryo's voice, spoke up. "I think we're supposed to be something on – get this – Genghis Khan. Again!" An incredulous laugh. "How messed up is that?"</p><p>"Sounds like busywork."</p><p>Jenrya wisely kept his mouth shut. Ryo rubbed him the wrong way, but he couldn't tell if it was the attitude or if it was because he didn't like that he was sitting in Takato's desk. Jenrya said nothing, deciding that silence was golden as he took out some notebook paper and handed it to Juri.</p><p>"Thank you, Jenrya," the hand puppet was set down as Juri took up pencil, her voice returning to normal. "I guess I'll write down the key points: anyone want to read them out-loud to me?"</p><p>Ryo shrugged. "What the hell." Everyone stared at him. "I'll do it."</p><p>Jenrya handed the packet to Ryo. Maybe it would be better if he just watched this new student before saying anything, observe him before he jumped the gun. Ryo read off the sheet, interjecting it with his own sarcastic remarks that had nothing to do with the project and oblivious to the worshipful stare Hirokazu fixed on him. Juri didn't seem to mind Ryo – but then again, she didn't seem to mind anything, tolerating just about anyone and trying to be friendly with whoever would let her, talking about this and that. Jenrya was ready to ignore his suspicions until Hirokazu suddenly asked Ryo if he ever played the Digimon card game.</p><p>"Used to. Not anymore." Ryo glanced at Jenrya, noticing his gaze on him. "What about you?"</p><p>"I'm not a serious player," Jenrya replied quietly.</p><p>Ryo raised an eyebrow at Jenrya, fixing him with a cynical smile.</p><p>"Oh, I think you are."</p><p>"What makes you so sure?" Jenrya asked.</p><p>"It's a lot different when other people are depending on you, for one thing," Jenrya froze at this cryptic remark. Ryo didn't seem to notice the other boy stiffen, going back to carelessly flipping through the packet. "Besides, it's a lot of fun when the stakes are low. It doesn't matter so much when you lose in a <em>game</em>."</p><p>Jenrya said nothing.</p><p>Ryo folded a page back. "When you're serious about it, though, you can't afford to lose. Know what I mean? Pretty sure you're hardcore about it."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Floating among the shifting neon digital lines, Takato gazed up at the darkness, his arms folded behind his head. He guessed it was several hours since the conversation with the Juggernaut; thinking back to it now, it already seemed like a vague memory. He wondered if it happened in the first place. He wasn't sure.</p><p>It got so...blurred.</p><p>Where was the Juggernaut? That question had been bugging the young Tamer for a while now as he tried to keep himself busy. At first he tried counting as high as he could, but that got boring after awhile, and he kept miscounting anyway. As time passed, he stopped bothering to play games in his mind, instead opting to stare off into nothing. Letting his mind go blank. There was nothing to focus on, nothing at all. Takato sighed. The problem with not thinking of <em>anything</em> was that eventually you'd think of something – like he was doing now – which would completely defeat the purpose.</p><p>It was with more than a little relief that he actually <em>welcomed</em> the supercomputer back when it spoke to him again. A "voice" cutting through the dark.</p><p>
  <strong> My apologies, companion system. New information processing status: COMPLETED.</strong>
</p><p>Takato pulled himself into a sitting position.</p><p>"New information?" From him?</p><p>
  <strong> No. Someone you know. During the conversation I had with you not long ago, I was reminded that the option of a permanent avatar was available. I decided to look for a familiar face so you will have less difficulty identifying with me. It took a while to process the data I copied from the scan, due to the outside source's nature and the fact it is different from yours, but I can now take a form.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Really?</em>
</p><p><strong>Observe.</strong> The digital lines rippled to Takato's surprise. The boy watched with interest as they changed directions and swirled into a spiral, winding about a small patch of shadow that seemed to be solidifying as light wound a dizzying pattern around it. They continued to be absorbed by the form until only the two of them were left floating in the empty space, now devoid of any color. The Juggernaut, getting to its new feet, plastered on a smile. <strong>Familiar?</strong></p><p>Takato was at a loss of words as the avatar gazed at him, still as a statue. He couldn't believe this – his eyes went wide with shock as he stared back at the human standing before him, breathless. <em>This…I…</em></p><p>
  <em> Jenrya.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> Of course. But remember I am not the real thing.</strong>
</p><p>Takato continued to stare, gaping, as Jenrya Lee strode toward him. This image of Jenrya was almost flawless: he had those same, piercing gray eyes, that cropped blue hair. Even the same expression was there, a gentle, knowing smile on Jenrya's face, though his clothes were a bit different than he remembered – in fact, looking closely, they would shift, from the orange and black outfit to a loose t-shirt and shorts to a black jacket and matching tight jeans. But…he wasn't a perfect copy, Takato saw that now. His stare dropped down to the other boy's chest. Occasionally it would spark with static, fuzzing in and out for a few moments only for the splotches to reappear again somewhere else on his body. Sometimes there would be holes where Takato could see through him.</p><p><strong>It is difficult to maintain an avatar here, hence the imperfections in the image.</strong> Jenrya…no, the Juggernaut, he realized, sauntered closer, looking down at Takato, who couldn't hide the struck expression on his face as he gazed up at his friend. <strong>An effective choice. I thought so.</strong> Jenrya's lips never moved.</p><p>Takato couldn't help but fall back into the habit of speaking aloud, swallowing several times as he tried to collect his wits about him. He was further startled as Jenrya/the Juggernaut held a hand out to him. Takato started to reach for it, but hesitated.</p><p>"I…w…won't I just go right through you?" Jeez, he was sounding like such an <em>idiot</em> right now…</p><p>
  <strong> No. I'm as material as you.<br/></strong>
</p><p>Humans, after all, valued physical contact.</p><p>Still doubtful, Takato accepted the gesture, allowing the avatar to pull him to his feet. Despite the fact he wasn't entirely solid, Jenrya/the Juggernaut was strong. Even now, a part of his stomach was fuzzing out along with the black denim jacket. His hand was even <em>warm</em>, Takato realized. Suddenly curious, he turned the avatar's hand over in his. There was that small scar across his knuckle, faint and almost invisible. The one that'd he gotten from a soda can because he hadn't been paying attention to what he was doing. Takato looked up at his friend's face: the supercomputer returned the glance with a serene, docile expression.</p><p>Reaching out tentatively, Takato touched the black jacket; it had been about to shift to the orange vest but solidified back to dark denim as soon as his fingers brushed it.</p><p>The Juggernaut stood where it was, allowing him to examine the avatar's shape. Takato took in everything with morbid curiosity, buttoning and unbuttoning the dark sleeves, poking his arms, gently bending the fingers back and forth, standing on his tiptoes and eyeing the other's shock of blue hair. He even went back and checked to see that the knuckle scar was still there, running his thumb over the small ridge. His eyes fell onto a patch of blurriness forming on Jenrya's/the Juggernaut's shoulder, and, with a sudden swell of courage, he poked several fingers through it: there was some resistance, rather like passing through thick, muggy hot fog. He could see part of his hand through the other boy's shoulder, his fingertips sticking out the other side.</p><p>As if suddenly self-conscious, Takato quickly jerked his hand away, as if he'd been stung. The hole closed, becoming solid again.</p><p><strong>Currently impossible to control those. A work in progress</strong>, the Juggernaut remarked, breaking its "silence". Jenrya's tanned hand rose up, gesturing at a new splotch forming on his side. For a moment, a string of static danced from his waist to his neck, vanishing just as quickly as it appeared. <strong>What do you think, Takato Matsuda? Is this suitable?</strong></p><p>Takato rubbed at his eyes, wondering at length if Jenrya was really standing here with him. "It's…it's almost…almost..." His voice was strained, tight. This couldn't be real, this was more than he could handle with indifference.</p><p>
  <strong> Like the real thing?</strong>
</p><p>"…y-yeah," Takato said, thoroughly shaken.</p><p><strong> This will make communication between us easier.</strong> Those gray eyes meet his, so familiar to him that Takato almost cried. He barely had enough self-control to prevent himself from bursting into helpless tears.</p><p>This wasn't Jenrya, he <em>knew</em> that. But still…it was so difficult not to let himself forget – even now, stealing a glance at the other boy – he was already starting to regard the avatar as "Jenrya", instead of "it", instead of "the Juggernaut". Gulping again, he turned away. Jenrya wasn't here. This was only a fake. A very, very, very good fake. But not Jenrya. <em>He looks exactly the same</em>, Takato worried.<em> Will I forget? </em></p><p>Takato raised his eyes to see Jenrya/the Juggernaut standing in front of him, his head tilted as he regarded him. Takato immediately dropped his gaze again, feeling self-conscious.</p><p><strong>This is important, Takato Matsuda. Pay attention. </strong>Jenrya knelt now, trying to get Takato to look him in the eyes. Takato looked away, biting his lip. He couldn't do this. Seeing Jenrya's face brought back all the fears, all the memories of his family and friends he'd tried so hard to forget. He couldn't take this, this pain: his family, his friends…but Jenrya was here now, someone was actually <em>here</em>. Tears brimmed, blurring the edges of his vision. <strong>Companion system, you are overreacting.<br/></strong></p><p>He knew that, but… "You…Jenrya…I." Takato trailed off lamely.</p><p>There was a pause, such a long one that Takato looked up, suddenly worried the other boy might have vanished on him. Those piercing gray eyes, devoid of that friendly, caring spark Jenrya possessed, were fixed on him. Locking him where he stood. Trapped now, the Tamer's gaze was transfixed. He couldn't look away, only squirm uncomfortably as he was held in place.</p><p>He felt like something in him was going to explode: it was building and building and wasn't stopping…</p><p>
  <strong> Do you want to believe I am him, companion system? Does it matter that much to you?</strong>
</p><p>Takato, his eyes glimmering with tears, gave the barest of nods.</p><p>
  <strong> Very well.</strong>
</p><p>Jenrya smiled again, and, taking a few steps forward, he wrapped his arms around Takato in a hug. Takato felt a sudden sob wrack his body as he pressed his face into the other boy's shoulder and <em>cried</em>. Everything came tumbling out. Jenrya said nothing. He couldn't speak because Jenrya was Jenrya. Jenrya never spoke. Something was breaking inside Takato, but he didn't care. He buried his tear-streaked face further. Jenrya never spoke, not with words, but with <em>feelings</em>, never with words. Jenrya was Jenrya now. As the Tamer sobbed quietly, his hands clutched blindly at the blue-haired boy, his fingers sinking into the warm body as the fuzzing patches appeared and disappeared. He <em>knew</em> this wasn't right, this wasn't Jenrya. But…but it was easier this way, just to have a friendly shoulder to cry against. To lie to himself.</p><p>This was a good lie.</p><p>It was a good one that would hurt him. It would hurt him simply because it was so very tempting, so inviting.</p><p><strong> It's going to be alright</strong>, Jenrya told him – now his "words" sounded so familiar, losing the stilted, formal tone. This only caused Takato to lose whatever little composure he had left, his choked sounds growing louder in desperate relief and more urgent. <strong>Takato, it's going to be okay. I'm here. I'm here for you.</strong></p><p>Takato cried himself out after a while. Jenrya slowly rocked him in the hug, imitating the images the supercomputer picked up from the scan. Eventually the wrenching sobs died down, although Takato continued to sniffle into the avatar's shoulder, his face still resting against his jacket.</p><p>
  <strong>Are you done?</strong>
</p><p>Takato rubbed at his nose, sniffling tearfully. "I…I think so."</p><p>
  <strong> There's no need to cry, Takato.</strong>
</p><p>But there <em>was</em> a reason to cry, there was always a reason to everything. The Juggernaut knew that, Takato knew that, Jenrya knew that. He cried for a bunch of reasons: he was scared, he was lonely, he was bored, he was angry, he was relieved, he was ashamed. Everything. Ashamed because he knew he was only setting himself, relieved because he was glad to be set up. It would hurt later. Much later. But right now there was only an aching numbness.</p><p>Takato wearily leaned his head against his friend's shoulder, pulling his hand out from where it had sunk into a translucent blotch in Jenrya's back. "I…you know why I cry. But…"</p><p><strong> I don't understand it.</strong> Jenrya finished for him. <strong>But maybe understanding isn't what matters anymore, Takato. Knowing why does. Besides, you know I can't cry: I can't identify with that feeling.<br/></strong></p><p>Takato said nothing, feeling some hiccups coming along.</p><p>A perfect imitation of a comforting chuckle. <strong>After today, you won't cry anymore, Takato. There won't be a reason to.</strong></p><p>"After today?" Takato craned his head up to blink in confusion at Jenrya. The other boy gave him that same, serene smile, still holding him. Jenrya wasn't worried. He wasn't because he couldn't. They weren't real emotions, merely fakes. But that didn't matter.</p><p>Jenrya was Jenrya now.</p><p><em>That</em> mattered. It mattered a lot.</p><p><strong>Don't you remember? </strong>Jenrya said. <strong>Today we merge.</strong></p><p>Oh. He forgot about that. Takato wiped the back of his hand across his eyes. He was numb, so very numb. Maybe it because something small inside was broken. He couldn't feel so much now. It didn't hurt as much as before.</p><p><strong>It won't hurt at all after we merge. </strong>Jenrya told him. <strong>You won't feel anything. Isn't that comforting, Takato? Doesn't that make you happy?</strong></p><p>"I-I don't know." Takato was being such a stupid idiot: Jenrya was probably laughing at him because he was a crybaby.</p><p><strong>I'm not laughing at you. I wouldn't do that, not to you. </strong>Jenrya rewarded him with a warm smile. <strong>It's good you let it all out. It's not a bright idea to keep it all pent up. You'd explode otherwise.</strong></p><p>Takato almost started bawling all over again – Jenrya sounded so <em>real</em> now, it was almost painful again.</p><p>
  <strong>Don't cry. It's going to be fine. I'll be there for you when the time is right.</strong>
</p><p>Would he? Takato would get lost, the lines weren't there because Jenrya had eaten them all up and didn't leave any behind. Because the lines had become Jenrya. Jenrya was made of those boring digital lines. They were gone, gone, gone. They weren't coming back and now there was just a whole lot of black here. There would be nothing to guide him to wherever he was supposed to go.</p><p><strong> You won't need them.</strong> <strong>I'll guide you the rest of the way after we meet again. Now</strong>, <strong>Takato, I need you to listen to me. This is important.</strong></p><p>A muted sound of agreement. Takato was listening.</p><p><strong> When we merge, you'll be conscious for five to ten minutes. Thirty at most. I won't be able to talk to you. When that happens, keep calm. Close your eyes, if it makes you feel any better: but you must stay still, okay? </strong>Okay.<strong> Great. Don't forget. You'll know the merge is beginning when you see images from outside. They'll appear on the matrix – that's the heavy thing on your head. It's going to be slow at first, the info you'll be receiving.<br/></strong></p><p>"Will it hurt?" Takato mumbled into the shoulder of Jenrya's black jacket.</p><p><strong>No, it won't. Not in the ways you're thinking of. It won't hurt emotionally or physically. But it will get…</strong>Jenrya trailed off, trying to figure out a way to phrase what he wanted to say in a way the companion system would understand. <strong>…it will get very confusing. It might be scary because you'll be receiving more than you think you can handle. You have to ignore the images, anything you can "see" or "hear". You mustn't let yourself get distracted – ignore everything, don't dwell on any one thing, otherwise you'll get overwhelmed. Don't get distracted.</strong> Jenrya repeated.</p><p>Takato's shoulders slumped. Okay. He wouldn't get distracted.</p><p>
  <strong>The first step of the merge is to ignore the vast amounts of info you receive. After that…it's really very easy. You have to ignore everything and, past all those images and sounds, you'll find me again.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>I'll wait for you.</strong>
</p><p>So…Takato had to ignore everything: it was only in <em>nothing</em> Jenrya would be there. It was because Jenrya was made up of those digital lines. The lines were made of numbers. Those numbers weren't really there. Jenrya was made up of nothing and so he would wait in nothing.</p><p>
  <strong> I'll show you what to do next. Then you won't be alone. You won't cry, you won't laugh, you won't feel anything anymore. Won't that be a relief? No responsibilities.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> No...responsibilities…?</em>
</p><p><strong>None. Zip. Nada</strong>, Jenrya reassured him with a grin. His hold around Takato loosened, allowing the Tamer some breathing space. It looked like the companion system was starting to regain his composure, although the brainwaves were still somewhat disjointed and unconnected in areas. A quick scan showed some of these probably wouldn't recover in the near future, too jarred by shock and stress. <strong>Nothing to worry about. You always worry too much, Takato. Lighten up some time. Whoever says <em>I'm</em> a worrywart hasn't met you.</strong></p><p>Takato managed a shaky laugh at Jenrya's remark. That was true. Maybe he did worry too much, even though he might go around with a grin on his face. You could still be hurting and smile on the outside. "…I'm not a worrywart, Jenrya." <em>Just a crybaby…</em></p><p><strong>Not all the time. Just most of it. And no, you're <em>not</em> a crybaby. Not to me.</strong> Jenrya amended and gently pried Takato away from his shoulder; it ran with static lines as it solidified, dry now and missing the wet stain from the tears earlier. The young Tamer swayed unsteadily on his feet, leaning into the avatar for support. <strong>Are you done crying?</strong> Jenrya asked again, his face still concerned. It was touching Jenrya was worried about him, miserable little Takato, the kid with so many flaws it took a computer four days to catalogue the biggest ones.</p><p>"Y-yeah."</p><p>
  <strong> That'll be the last time you cry, you know. Sure you don't want to have another go?</strong>
</p><p>Takato almost smiled. "No, not really. I don't really like crying, Jenrya. Alwayed hated it when I get a stuffy nose, and my eyes turn all red and irritated."</p><p>Jenrya tilted his head curiously. <strong>They're not red now.</strong></p><p>"I know."</p><p>After a short pause, Jenrya patted Takato on the shoulder. <strong>Get ready, Takato. </strong>Moving away from the dazed boy, the avatar strode into the darkness. Jenrya was far away when he finally turned around, looking over his shoulder at the companion system, lost in the endless space around him, and looking so small. <strong>Don't forget, Takato. Otherwise you'll just make it harder for yourself. The more attention you pay to the pictures and sounds, the worse it'll be. If you concentrate, you won't get lost. I'll wait for you. I'll show the way once you get past.</strong></p><p>Takato nodded dumbly. Without another word, Jenrya turned and, with a nonchalant wave, vanished. The lines were back again as soon as the avatar blipped away, shifting about as if Jenrya hadn't ever eaten them up in the first place. The silly things were too blind to see his friend had ate them and too stupid to care even if he told them. Besides, they couldn't hear him, even if he shouted at the top of his lungs that yes, Jenrya <em>had</em> been here, that he'd eaten all those dumb lines and they hadn't even known it! Takato Matsuda hugged his arms to himself, shivering despite himself. Would he be eaten, used like those poor, stupid lines? Would he be eaten all up?</p><p>Would he be eaten by Jenrya Lee too, only to be spat out as soon as his friend was done?</p><p>Takato hoped not.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Her throat hurt. Ruki had to use a scarf to hide the bruises, but at least she was out and about instead of hiding in her room.</p><p>Now that she was feeling a little better, she was determined to get to the bottom of this. "This" being what happened two days ago. It was still freaky, thinking back to it now. It was hard to believe that Takato – innocent, goody two-shoes Takato – could attack her, say those weird things to her.</p><p>Wandering about the park, Ruki kept herself alert. She didn't know if Takato might be lurking about, waiting for her to drop her guard, and it did occur to her that walking alone like this, she could present a tempting target. <em>Why didn't Jenrya tell me Takato got his goggles back? </em></p><p>Ruki made her way through the grove of trees, her gray uniform blending in and out of the shadows. It hadn't been a hard decision to play hooky. She simply pretended to be sick so her grandmother wouldn't start asking questions, and took off as soon as she could sneak out. Her clothes, however, were all in the wash: her grandmother had been surprised when she'd staggered home caked in mud. But she hadn't asked questions, instead herding her granddaughter off to the bathroom and sweeping away with the dirty jeans and shirt. Her mom would've asked all the questions. Good thing she was away at her modeling gigs...again.</p><p>"Ruki?"</p><p>Ruki glanced up at the familiar voice. Waiting for her partner, Renamon was leaning against a tree trunk only a few yards away.</p><p>"Any luck finding Impmon?" Ruki asked as she caught up.</p><p>Renamon shook her head, falling into step with her Tamer. "No. The area's just too large for me to cover alone, Ruki – there are thousands of places he could be hiding."</p><p>"Stubborn twerp," Ruki grumbled. Her voice was still a bit hoarse, but the day off helped. "But I've a feeling he won't be of much help, now that we've found Takato." They were approaching sensitive territory now. Renamon's voice was a low, dangerous monotone.</p><p>"I find it hard to believe he had it in him. He seemed too soft."</p><p>"Me too. I'm wondering why he did it."</p><p>Renamon stopped in her tracks, turning to gaze down at Ruki. The Tamer paused, watching as her partner looked about for a proper way to say something that looked important. Although Renamon was usually composed and cool, her snout was working around her fangs as she avoided the girl's eyes in a slightly nervous gesture. This was going to be awkward, but she felt she had to say it, no matter how unsure she felt about her partner's reaction. Her inhuman eyes fixing on Ruki.</p><p>"I'm glad you're alright."</p><p>Ruki looked away, her cheeks flushing. Her stare focused somewhere else, suddenly self-conscious. "I…it's not really important. We need to find out what's the deal with Takato." She cleared her throat. "…But….thanks, Renamon."</p><p>Renamon nodded. Although her fox's face was unreadable, she was feeling a rather strange emotion as she turned her attention on her Tamer. It was rare for Ruki to give thanks (or praise) to anyone, much less her Digimon partner. But Ruki was changing now – even if she herself wasn't aware of it. Maybe for the better.</p><p>"Okay, this is far enough." Ruki plunked herself down on the damp ground. Renamon dutifully kneeled down as her Tamer tried to get things straight. "I hate to sound like Jenrya, but we've got to be objective about this."</p><p>"I can see the merit in that."</p><p>"Right. What we know: Takato isn't acting very Takato-ish. He attacked me, stole his own D-Arc, led us to a wild Digimon, and somehow got his goggles back from Jenrya." Ruki counted off each point on her fingers as Renamon nodded. "Also, Guilmon wasn't with him. He's been missing for almost a week. We found his D-Arc, some of his cards and his goggles at Tokyo Tower."</p><p>"Guilmon didn't seem to know where Takato went, therefore Takato never told him," Renamon added.</p><p>"What we don't know: why Takato felt the need to attack me for his D-Arc. Why Jenrya didn't tell me. Where Takato ran off to before or even where he is now. Also, I'm still puzzled about his whole disappearance in the first place. It's fishy."</p><p>"Didn't Jenrya say the night he disappeared, he left through his window? I don't see how he could have done that, unless he jumped."</p><p>"That a two-story drop, Renamon. He would've broken something if he didn't do the brilliant thing and land on his head."</p><p>"True."</p><p>Ruki shifted in her position – her school uniform's skirt was starting to get wet from the damp ground. "I don't know what to say. Nothing seems to connect. Either Takato's snapped or something, or there's another explanation."</p><p>"It would be better for his own well-being if it's the latter." Renamon said – she buffed her claws on her fur coat, seemingly nonchalant, though her voice clearly stated she would carry the hidden threat out if necessary.</p><p>"I got to tell Jenrya. Yeah, I know Takato's his friend and all, but this is too important." Ruki drew her knees up to her chest, frowning to herself. "None of this makes any sense. And it was weird how Takato led us on that chase too."</p><p>"Almost as if he knew where he was taking us."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>It was after class that Jenrya finally found himself alone with Ryo. The new guy and him had clean-up duty. Usually he wasn't a fan of staying behind, but at the moment, he was actually glad he'd gotten an opportunity to talk to Ryo without worrying bout others overhearing. It would be easier this way. He had some questions of his own he wanted to ask.</p><p>"Get it nice and spotless," Mr. Mori had said.</p><p>Ryo had sketched off a salute. "Will do."</p><p>He frowned thoughtfully as he watched the other boy sweep the floor. Golden sunlight, deepening gradually to red as the sun sank lower, tumbled through the glass panes of the windows. The teacher's footsteps faded away by the time Ryo finally glanced over his broom at Jenrya, raising an eyebrow as if just noticing the other boy sizing him up.</p><p>"Well? What do you want?"</p><p>Jenrya didn't return the grin. "What were you trying to say to me this morning, Akiyama?"</p><p>Back and forth the broom went.</p><p>"Hey, I was wondering if you played Digimon."</p><p>"You know that's not what I meant." Jenrya scowled across the room at Ryo. "You know perfectly well what you're talking about."</p><p>Ryo continued sweeping. "Maybe I do. But maybe I don't." He held up a finger before Jenrya could interrupt him. He closed his mouth, his eyebrows drawing together. "All I did was give you a warning. I'll be blunt: how long have you been doing this? Do you even know what you got yourself into?"</p><p>"Long enough that I know what I'm doing," Jenrya shot back. So Ryo knew what he was talking about, like he'd expected – he'd been playing games earlier, teasing him by taunting him with hints. Like he was testing the waters. Ryo knew Digimon wasn't only a game. And that made Jenrya all the more suspicious: was Ryo an ally, then? Or a potential enemy? Jenrya couldn't be sure. "How come you know about Digimon?"</p><p>Ryo turned his back on Jenrya with a tight smile and a shrug.</p><p>"Does it matter? Thing is, I know tons about them. Call me a pro." <em>Swish. Swish. </em>"And you're not. Just because you're aware of the fact that <em>this</em> is reality doesn't mean that you're prepared for what's coming. Just because you know <em>what</em> Digimon are doesn't mean you know <em>how</em> or <em>why</em>. So, no, I don't think you know what you're doing. On top of that, there's something wrong with your way of thinking."</p><p>"And what would that be?"</p><p>Ryo leaned his broom against the windowsill, half-sitting on it as he studied Jenrya. "Digimon and humans aren't meant to go hand in hand, know what I mean? It's like peanut butter and pickles: they just don't mix. It's wrong and it doesn't work." Ryo folded his hands over his chest, staring at Jenrya with an almost bitter expression. "You're just gonna regret it if you try to tame one."</p><p>"For your information, I never 'tamed' Terriermon," Jenrya said frostily.</p><p>"Hey, whatever makes it easier to swallow," Ryo shrugged. "Believe whatever you want. Here's some advice. Maybe you haven't noticed, but the wild Digimon are increasing in numbers. You can't beat all of them, no matter how hard you try. On top of that, you can't tame a Digimon. Sooner or later he's bound to go feral on you. And it'll be at the worst time possible."</p><p>"Why should I believe you?"</p><p>"Look, you shouldn't involve yourself with something that'll backfire on you. You're in over your head."</p><p>Jenrya fought to keep his composure from breaking: everything this stranger said went against everything he believed and he could only feel a slowly smoldering anger aimed Ryo. But he had to keep calm, despite the fact that a muscle in his face was ticking. Terriermon wouldn't turn into one of those wild Digimon they encountered. <em>This guy has some major problems to be spouting this stuff</em>, Jenrya thought to himself, his gray eyes fixed on the black ones of the new student. And how was he over his head? What did that even mean?</p><p>"Believe me. Or don't," said Ryo. "Of course you're not going to take my word for it."</p><p>"Don't see why I should."</p><p>A cynical smirk as Ryo turned to face him. "I have experience. More than you, that's for sure. For one thing, <em>I</em> know where the wild Digimon come from. I've been there."</p><p>Jenrya felt his mouth start to drop open in a surprised gape. Angrily he clamped it shut. This was insane! How could Ryo know where <em>they</em> came from? Jenrya didn't know, Ruki didn't know, and he was pretty sure Takato didn't know either. And, up till now, he'd been convinced they were the only three who knew about the existence of Digimon. Well, up until Ryo swaggered into his class. Just how many people knew of Digimon? And what about the wild ones? How come no one seemed to do anything about them?</p><p>"Way I see it, you've got a timebomb next to you with your partner. Digimon can't be tamed. No matter how nice you are to them, how much leeway you give to them, they just can't get along with us. They can't or they won't. They might behave for a bit, but they become wild eventually," Ryo's lips tightened. "I'd be better off trying to warn some of your friends, but it looks like one of them's gone and disappeared on me."</p><p>Jenrya froze.</p><p>Ryo pushed himself away from the window and picked up his coat from where he'd tossed it over someone's desk. He shrugged into it. "Really too bad. He probably wasn't as stubborn as you. Still, I'd be careful if <em>I</em> saw him again…"</p><p>Jenrya glared at Ryo. Was he here to help or to be a human speed bump? What was his game? Why did he know about them, about the wild ones? From the sounds of it, Ryo also had an idea of what they might be up against.</p><p>Only Jenrya kept getting the impression there would be strings attached.</p><p>"I gotta get home." Ryo headed for the door, his boots thudding on the floor. Reaching it, he glanced over at Jenrya: for a moment, an unreadable expression crossed his face. It almost looked pitying. It was gone just as quickly as it had appeared. "See you around."</p><p>And then Ryo left.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Closer. Is it coming closer?</p><p>Yes. Almost time.</p><p>Takato hugged his knees to his chest, resting his cheek against them as he stared at the ever-changing shapes. They really weren't that bad, now that he thought about it. They couldn't help being what they were. And everything was okay, because when Jenrya came to eat them, they never knew what was happening. Everything was okay.</p><p><em>Any time now</em>, Takato thought. The merge would be starting soon and he needed to be ready for it. It would be a big surprise, the transition from this digital plane to the Real World, but he would be ready, just like he'd promised Jenrya.</p><p>
  <strong>Five minutes remaining and counting, companion system.</strong>
</p><p>Glancing up at the arc of digital lines overhead, Takato blinked owlishly. Hard to imagine four days already passed – so fast, too! But there was still an eternity before he would have to meet Jenrya again. Takato tried to remember what Jenrya told him. <em>I'll find Jenrya. He said he'll wait for me. </em>And Jenrya would, because Jenrya also kept his promises.</p><p>Jenrya knew what he was doing. He knew everything because he had access to the entire Tokyo network. He saw more than he ever could.</p><p>Takato admired Jenrya a lot.</p><p>
  <strong>Three minutes remaining and counting.</strong>
</p><p>Despite what Jenrya told him, Takato still had to wonder how intense the first part of the merge would be. It sounded just as confusing as his friend described. Would he be strong enough to ignore the distractions, like Jenrya seemed to think he was? He hoped so. It was up to Takato to do his part.</p><p>
  <strong>One minute remaining and counting.</strong>
</p><p>Takato closed his eyes, concentrating. It was coming.</p><p>The Real World was coming for him one last time.</p><p>His glazed eyes blinked for the first time in several days as Takato "woke up", shunted out of the digital plane with no warning. A gasp ripped through him, the wet cough from someone drowning. Takato couldn't see anything. <em>Where…?</em> It sank in as he sucked in a breath. He was in the Juggernaut – somewhere, he vaguely remembered this seat, the gross sensation of wires worming their way into his skin. It felt like someone else's memories, a lifetime ago.</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya?</em>
</p><p>No answer. Of course there wasn't one. Jenrya told him that he couldn't talk with him. It was just Takato. He would have to sit tight and stay quiet until the merge started. Still, there were a thousand things bugging him now that he was fully conscious. For one thing, his throat was awfully dry, like someone decided to pour a pound of dust down it. Swallowing carefully, he began to work moisture back into his mouth as he took note of his surroundings.</p><p>I<em>t's…it's amazing.</em> The Juggernaut completely engulfed him; he could literally feel it moving around. <em>Is this what it feels like to be eaten?</em> Maybe. The lines had never told him. It was very warm here, very crowded. Around him, things were in constant motion, shifting. The coil around his neck was throbbing gently, but it wasn't tight. He could breathe well enough, but that was about it.</p><p>This was reality as it was. It was here Jenrya couldn't go: this was what Takato was for. He had a potential for "power", like the Juggernaut told him.</p><p>
  <em> It's nice to know Jenrya needs me.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</em>
</p><p>Jenrya left the building only to face another surprise: Ruki, the last person he expected to see, was waiting for him, the pony-tailed Tamer leaning against a lamppost just outside of the school grounds.</p><p>She had been watching Jenrya since he'd left the school. There was something in his step that told her he was agitated about something. Now what?</p><p>"What's the matter?"</p><p>Jenrya scowled, glancing at her for the first time. He ignored her question, returning it with one of his own. "What're you doing here, Ruki?" His eyebrows knit in confusion as he noticed something. "And what's wrong with your voice? You sound hoarse."</p><p>"If you'd <em>stop</em> and let me talk, I'd tell you." Ruki spat back. Just because Jenrya was mad about something didn't mean that she'd sit here and take it. "Look, I need to talk to you in private. It's important."</p><p>Without another word, Jenrya led her around the campus, moving quickly about the perimeter of the school grounds until he had come upon a cramped hall between two of the main buildings. The alley ended in a dead end, but he was positive that no one would overhear their conversation. Jenrya was surprised when she fixed an angry glare on him, her hand on her hip.</p><p>"Jenrya, <em>why</em> aren't you returning my calls? And why didn't you tell me Takato stopped by your apartment?'</p><p>Jenrya's eyebrows shot up. For a second he completely forgot he was angry at Ryo. What was she talking about? Had she found Takato? Jenrya was completely lost and he held up his hands in a gesture to slow down. "Back up! When did Takato stop by my place?"</p><p>Ruki was taken aback. She'd been so sure that Jenrya might have some answers.</p><p>"Well, he picked up his goggles, didn't he?"</p><p>"They're still on my desk. Why wouldn't they be?"</p><p>Ruki kicked the crate she was currently sitting on with the back of her heel, thoroughly frustrated. "When I saw him, he had them. So I figure he visited you."</p><p>"You <em>saw</em> him? Why didn't you call me?" Jenrya exclaimed.</p><p>"Hey, I tried. Spent all morning trying to contact you!"</p><p>"I was trying to call <em>you</em> yesterday!" Jenrya exclaimed.</p><p>Ruki smiled bitterly, gesturing to her neck. "Yeah, I wasn't exactly in a position to pick it up then."</p><p>She pulled down her scarf. Jenrya's confusion doubled as he noticed the ugly, purple bruises in a ring around the girl's throat. Alarm bells went off. When had this happened? Why didn't Ruki tell him she was hurt? <em>She needs a doctor or something. </em>Ruki really shouldn't be walking around like that, she should get some treatment, and he told her as much.</p><p>"I'm fine. Besides, if I went to a doctor, they'd start asking a bunch of stupid questions. It'd be way too awkward."</p><p>Jenrya was incredulous. "How can you be fine? Who did this to you? What happened? And what does Takato have to do with this?"</p><p>"I came to you hoping I'd get some answers," Ruki gazed at a point past Jenrya as she continued. "But I guess I might as well start here. First off, I'm <em>fine</em>. Don't treat me like I'm some kind of baby. I can take care of myself." She took a breath, collecting himself. "Two days ago I saw Takato –"</p><p>"Where?"</p><p>"Near the park. Now stop interrupting me!" Ruki glowered at Jenrya until he raised his hands in submission before continuing. "As I was saying, I saw Takato. Actually, Renamon saw him before I did. He was acting all weird, Jenrya. Like…well, it's hard to explain. Very unTakato-ish. For some reason, he was staring at me with this really creepy look." Ruki's eyes narrowed, trying to recall the exact order of events. "As soon as I saw him, he turned and ran into the park. I went after him, but he gave both of us a good chase."</p><p>"He shouldn't have been able to outrun you, much less Renamon…"</p><p>"You say something?"</p><p>"Nothing."</p><p>"You can mumble whatever you want <em>after</em> I'm done. Jeez. Anyway, we went after him. He led us near the playground – you know which one I'm talking about – and then a wild Digimon appeared. We had to deal with Greymon before we could deal with Takato. I was too busy trying to help Renamon to notice that he was kind of sidling closer to me: actually, I thought he was trying to get out of Renamon's way…but that wasn't the case…" Ruki shook her head, her expression darkening.</p><p>This didn't sound at all like Takato: his friend just wouldn't act at all like this, especially not when his parents were so worried about him.</p><p>"Takato attacked me," Ruki said coolly. Jenrya stared. "I ended up falling down because he surprised me. He started choking me, which is where these," here she pointed at the healing bruises on her neck, "came from. I think he was trying to prevent me from fighting back, because he pretty much killed my backpack stealing his own D-Arc. What idiot would steal something that's his to begin with? He said a bunch of weird stuff to me afterward and then he vanished off somewhere. Kyuubimon couldn't find him."</p><p>Jenrya ran his hands through his cropped blue hair, trying to figure out what this meant. This wasn't what he'd been expecting, and, with a jolt, he realized Ryo had indirectly warned him this might happen. Ryo knew something was wrong, but he hadn't said anything, had only given him that bizarre little remark. <em>"…still, I'd be careful if </em>I<em> saw him again".</em> Jenrya wearily scrubbed at his eyes.</p><p>"Well, what do you think?"</p><p>"I'd have a hard time believing this if you weren't sitting here right in front of me," Jenrya replied. "You know as well as I do that he'd never do anything like this."</p><p>"But he did. Nice conclusion."</p><p>"There's only so much I can do with what I've been told, I'm not going to automatically come up with answers out of nowhere. What I <em>do</em> know is that Takato wouldn't hurt you. My take is whoever you saw wasn't Takato." Jenrya's mouth tightened. "Besides, how could he have gotten his goggles back? Maybe it's a fake. A...Digimon who changes shapes?" Jenrya sucked in a hissing breath, letting it out in an exasperated whoosh. "You know, someone warned me about this."</p><p>Ruki was immediately on her guard. "Who?"</p><p>"New kid in my class. Ryo Akiyama. Got a chance to talk to him after school and…I didn't really agree with what he was saying." Well, that was an understatement, but it didn't really matter. "He told me to back off. Said Terriermon was a bad influence. I don't suppose you've heard of him?"</p><p>"Ryo Akiyama? Doesn't ring a bell."</p><p>"He said he knows where these wild Digimon come from, but he didn't tell me. Guy's not exactly a fountain of info. You want to know my opinion?" Jenrya said. "I think he's involved in this whole thing. He only told me to be careful if I saw Takato again, but he didn't even say why."</p><p>Ruki frowned. "What if he's really on our side? We'd be wasting time pointing fingers at the wrong person. At this point we're undermanned, in case you haven't noticed."</p><p>"All I know is it's too convenient he happens to transfer to my school," Jenrya said. Ryo knew about both him and Takato. Probably Ruki too. It sounded like he wanted to make contact. <em>But why now?</em> He wouldn't know, not until he'd talked to Ryo again.</p><p>Ryo was right. They <em>would</em> be seeing each other again.</p><p>
  <em>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</em>
</p><p>Where was Jenrya?</p><p>It must have been at least half an hour since Takato found himself, again, in the embrace of the Juggernaut. If time seemed to crawl in the digital plane, then it completely stopped here. Where was the Juggernaut? Where was Jenrya? Wasn't he supposed to be somewhere now? Of course his questions went unanswered – before, the Juggernaut had been able to read whatever he thought or felt, and not much later, Jenrya had done the same thing. But neither responded to his thoughts now. It had been almost comforting to "hear" another being. <em>This</em> was just plain creepy. He didn't enjoy having to listen to the creaks of the Juggernaut's coils against each other, the dull rasping sounds of metal against metal.</p><p>At least he wasn't being crushed.</p><p><em>The merge should be starting soon.</em> Takato wasn't looking forward to it, but he couldn't disappoint his Jenrya, not after he'd made that promise not to get distracted, to find his way to Jenrya's nothing. <em>Well</em>, an unstable smile, <em>they always say "no pain, no gain"</em>. Although that probably couldn't really apply to his current situation, because Jenrya assured him that he wouldn't feel any pain. <em>I guess it's really just the principle.</em></p><p>Takato felt disconnected. As if he wasn't really all here. Like he wasn't really a part of the world outside. Takato couldn't imagine what it might've been like if he hadn't followed Guilmon so blindly that night. Wait…but was it Guilmon? Had Guilmon brought him here? Or someone else? Takato couldn't be sure. Did it even matter?</p><p>
  <em>No.<br/></em>
</p><p>Talk about a relief. If everything started to matter again, he'd probably go crazy. A chuckle escaped his lips, chapped from disuse. It wound its way through the coils above him, around him, below him and was finally lost in the silence. He didn't want to go crazy. Jenrya wouldn't like it. Jenrya liked him the way he was, after all.</p><p>He already missed Jenrya. His family and friends were already a dull, faceless mass smearing into a blur in his memory – but Jenrya Lee was very clear. So sharp he was unreal. Everything about him was burned into the young Tamer's memory: those too-clear gray eyes, that blue hair, the holes and splotches of fuzziness that wouldn't quite go away, the scar on his knuckle he'd gotten from a soda can because he hadn't been paying attention and cut himself on it. He had bled and bled for a little bit before Takato had enough time to drag him over to the school nurse, apologizing. Takato was very sorry about that too, that scar that had been his doing. It had been because Takato had been talking, showing Jenrya some new drawings that Jenrya had cut himself. So it was his fault that Jenrya had that tiny, itty bitty scar across his knuckle. At least Jenrya wasn't mad at him.</p><p>And that was all that mattered. As long as he did whatever made Jenrya happy, Jenrya wouldn't leave him. Takato wouldn't be alone.</p><p><em>I don't want to be alone.</em> Takato shuddered. It was bad enough he was alone right now. He couldn't see anything because of the matrix resting over his eyes, blocking his vision. It was pitch-black. Even if the lines were to return, he wouldn't be able to see them. He really <em>was</em> alone.<em> I don't want to be alone forever.</em></p><p>Jenrya wouldn't leave him. Bolstering his own faith was rather easy, considering how much he liked the other Tamer. Jenrya was reliable (unlike Takato), Jenrya had patience (unlike Ruki), Jenrya also cared for him – after all, he'd been nice enough to spend four days cataloguing everything wrong with Takato, trying to point the problems out so it might be possible to fix them. Takato wouldn't be fixing his flaws though. Jenrya would.</p><p>To be honest, Takato couldn't help feeling scared. Yeah, he knew he wasn't a little kid anymore, but still. Jenrya waiting for him would make it slightly easier, but it didn't make him any less scared. But the stuff before? Would there be just too much to handle? Or would it be the things he would hear and see themselves that would be too much? Unfortunately, Jenrya hadn't been very specific about that, so he had no way of knowing.</p><p>Takato was so wrapped up in his thoughts that at first he didn't notice the small image beginning to come into focus. By the time he noticed, the number had become two: the pictures were each different, but they were definitely there. Takato could see them. It was just like Jenrya told him.</p><p>It was starting.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued…</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Omnipresence</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The merge starts between Takato and the supercomputer known as the Juggernaut. Ryo encounters Jenrya again.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Omnipresence)</strong>
</p><p>The merge started.</p><p>Takato struggled to stay calm as he warily eyed the two images popping up before the darkness covering his eyes. The moving pictures were innocent enough. The one to his far right was just a little girl in a swing. The other was feed from a department store's security camera: shoppers milled about in the rotating image as the lens swiveled. Another feed blipped on. Was this really from the outside? Takato blinked, focusing his gaze on the three images. Must be.</p><p><em>Is this what the Juggernaut sees? </em>The Juggernaut couldn't see. But Jenrya could.</p><p>So was this what Jenrya saw with his eyes that were everywhere?<em><br/></em></p><p>Another image popped in, two others fuzzing in right after it. There was more colors, more <em>everything</em>, and he couldn't watch all of this at once. Now he thought he could hear something; if Takato concentrated, the incoming sound became a bit clearer. More coherent. From his impression, it sounded like a heated fight between a man and a woman. The two voices got louder as Takato listened. He jumped as there was a resounding slap and then an outraged cry. What happened? Who slapped who? <em>Is this what people outside do?</em> It was scary: two grown adults resorting to violence when words didn't work. A horrifying thought. Did <em>parents </em>do that?</p><p>Did his parents do that? Did they hit each other too when they got mad?</p><p>The sobs didn't fade away. Instead they were joined by more sounds, crowding in about Takato as he struggled to take in everything coming through the matrix, filtering in faster and faster. People, machines, animals, plants. <em>Everything</em> he could see and hear, but it was so confusing.A glimpse of a young girl skipping rope. The sounds of a siren, followed by the blood curdling sound of an air raid alarm from decades ago. Japan had once been in a great war for its honor, fought against the Americans and their allies. This war ended a long long long time ago. Jenrya knew of it and now Takato knew about it, right to the stuff that was still classified.</p><p>Documents on encoded files laid bare before him, hundreds upon hundreds. Thousands. Millions. Behind the matrix, Takato's unfocused eyes flicked back and forth as images continued to assault him.</p><p>
  <em> Do my parents hit each other?</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Was Jenrya alive to see these wars?</em>
</p><p><em> Do people really do things like </em>that<em> when they're alone?</em></p><p>These were the memories of the city.</p><p>Tokyo was alive with information. His nerves were on fire, electric. It would take several lifetimes for a human to sort through even a quarter of what was here: Tokyo's past memories, the present and the coming future could be felt. Takato could feel a dull buzz thundering in his skull. A man in his mid-twenties sank to the ground, his blood seeping into his jacket from a gaping wound in his side. Takato saw the one who did it too, seeing both the victim and the assailant as if from two different sets of eyes. People died even as he sat here. Now there was the surprised cry of a baby opening her eyes for the first time in a hospital. So many people being born too. But their lives were so short…</p><p>
  <em> People are born only to die.</em>
</p><p>Takato wanted to squeeze his eyes shut. There was too much color! Too much to see! He couldn't focus on anything – everything was moving, sliding over the still pictures and sitting on one another as more joined in. Videos. A boy participating in a debate to practice for some competition. Hissing static weaving in and out as one TV channel had to report technical difficulties to its unfortunate viewers, the announcer apologizing. The sounds were from everywhere! Was this what Jenrya saw? Was he such a powerful, omnipotent being he could control what Takato was now seeing?</p><p><em>This, this, this – how can people be like this? How can Jenrya see all of this at once? </em>How could his friend make any sense of this? It was going to swallow Takato, suck him into the confusion and force him to apply meaning to each and every thing he heard and saw. This was too much for him to handle alone.</p><p>
  <em>People are born only to die.</em>
</p><p>Humans have such short life spans.</p><p>"…High winds can be expected tonight..."</p><p>For some reason, <em>Homo sapiens </em>are one of the few, if only, species to commit suicide.</p><p>
  <em>Suicide…?</em>
</p><p><span>Suicide (adjective) </span>– the act of intentionally killing oneself; one who commits suicide.</p><p>How could Takato find Jenrya in nothing? He was surrounded by everything! There were more and more pictures now. Takato had only to look in on one or listen to a particular whispering voice through the crowd to feel the information filter into his mind. A dry, withered cackle. This particular old woman found the perfect gift for her husband and intended to surprise him as soon as he got back from work. A photo of a girl in somber black flickered into view. She died recently, having drowned in an accident because she was drunk behind the wheel when she missed the turn and plunged off the road. Suddenly <em>knowing </em>why made Takato wonder what it would be like to die like that, to drown. Would it hurt as much as getting eaten by Jenrya? Would it hurt? Would it hurt a lot?</p><p>"Don't you <em>dare </em>show your face to me!"</p><p>Someone shoplifting from the department store. Takato saw it, just as his "eyes" in the security camera saw it. The man's name was Junichi Iwaaki, two children, age thirty-five, five foot seven, one hundred eighty pounds. The view turned slowly as the lens rotated. Security coming to pick the man up. He would get in trouble.</p><p>"Mom, I have to write this proof, and…"</p><p>The next Olympics would be held in Dallas, Texas.</p><p>…International news: the President of the United States will be impeached for…</p><p>Classified info peeling back.</p><p>People were dying even now. And more were being born to replace those gone.</p><p>
  <em>Does Jenrya see like this? Does he see everything? Is this why he knows everything?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</em>
</p><p>"Wow, will you look at that?" Someone breathed.</p><p>Jenrya turned. A young man was staring as a small crowd clustered around him, staring at something. On an overhead sign, the lights flickered on and off. The electronics in the store's display blinked on and off in time with the sign's neon lettering. Was something wrong with the power? Turning around, wide-eyed, it looked like everything in the area was acting up. Down the street, a restaurant's windows glared black and orange as the lights inside turned on again, only to shut off. Jenrya cast a glance at his watch. The numbers cycled in rapid spurts.</p><p>His watch was reading in binary?</p><p>Jenrya frowned as he looked up again at the flashing store. What in the world was going on?</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Takato wanted to shut out everything. Shut off his eyes, shut off his ears, and turn off his brain.</p><p>What made it worse was the fact he knew why people did what they did. The knowledge flooded into his mind as new sounds and images crowded each other out. The pictures always brought some sort of understanding. Could he close his eyes, blind himself from all of this? No, they wouldn't respond to his command. Why wasn't Jenrya here? Photos were being scanned and put on web sites. Photos of people doing funny things in them. A sound of a scream from somewhere and then several gunshots. A hand-held video camera filming a family outing to the Sunshine 60.</p><p>Everything came in so fast. Thousands – no, <em>millions</em>– of faces. Millions of sounds.</p><p>There was just too much. He understood too much.</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya!</em>
</p><p>Jenrya wasn't here. Jenrya was waiting for him in nothing. Takato was surrounded by <em>everything</em>. Nothing was so very far away. Would it even be possible, to bypass all of this attacking his senses of sight and hearing? A human couldn't take in this much. Takato was human. Jenrya wasn't. But Jenrya needed him precisely because he was human. But how could he break free? Bits of the past getting mixed with the present. Bits and pieces, like broken china. Like so much broken china.</p><p>Something was already broken in Takato. It ruptured further.</p><p>Takato couldn't be here. Shouldn't be.</p><p>The matrix swarmed him with the overwhelming noises, the pictures too clear and vivid. There were so many faces. So many dead, cold faces. So many people dying. And so many didn't care that there was a sea of dead. In the morgue, there were thousands of dead, cataloged on shelves – some where going to be cut open. They slept in their shelves. Deaths from old age, heart attacks, accidents, jealous husbands and wives…the people in white lab coats taking pictures of the dead for their files. <em>Snap </em>went the camera and then the angle changed for another photo. Takato saw what the camera saw as its flash went off. Another dead face. This one died from loss of blood, but it had been on purpose.</p><p>Humans were always dying. Humans committed suicide.</p><p>The only strength humans had was their technology and numbers.</p><p>And even that could be taken away from them.</p><p>You just had to surprise them, to corner them. It'd been done before, in another World.</p><p>The sea of dead faces, hidden behind the metal doors of their shelves, smeared away only to be replaced with even more to see and hear. These were from the outside. There was no place to squirm away from this overload of knowledge. The subways: off schedule. Buses: not in operation suddenly. Lights turning on and off, faster and faster. Everything moving. Horns, curses, sirens, shouts. Thousands passed each other, never stopping as the crowds went along the sidewalks. They were so ignorant, so very lucky. Takato envied them. They weren't breaking into pieces. They weren't sitting here.</p><p>He knew too much now. More information spilling into him, torrents of images and noises. Takato instinctively tried to fight against it. The dead faces intermingling with the living. After all, the dead had just as much to say as the living. But they were locked away because they couldn't help but be cold and lifeless. Like a bunch of rocks. Like Jenrya. Jenrya was warm to the touch but Jenrya had holes. Jenrya wasn't alive in the outside world. Jenrya loved to eat things up because it made him powerful. Jenrya had to eat to become Jenrya. And Jenrya, too, saw what he saw.</p><p>
  <em>Am I a companion system? Is that all?</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Just a tool? Has being human ever meant anything?</em>
</p><p>The faces blended into one another. Everyone was gone. But their memories remained and became ghosts. The computers didn't care and the Juggernaut cared least of all. The Juggernaut had been tampered with, long ago. A woman named Kincaid saw to it. But she wasn't a human at all. She was a lot stronger than that.</p><p>There were others. There was Jenrya, who wasn't really Jenrya. There was also a boy named Ryo Akiyama, who had been MIA and was back. The records said he should've been dead. Obviously they were wrong and those records needed to be updated. And then there were the Digimon. Everything fell together. It made so much sense.</p><p>People were dying even now. And more would die in the future. Everything was based on death and rebirth.</p><p>So much made sense now as the images came in even greater numbers. <em>They</em> would invade this world. <em>They</em> would rule the future. And Takato would be one of the key points in opening the weakening rift in Tokyo; it was all that stood between entry from the Digital World and the Real World. There really <em>was </em>a Digital World. It wasn't just a game at all, but he already knew because Jenrya told him that it wasn't and his friend knew everything because he saw all. Jenrya knew of the sister who had broken her brother's toy dog. Jenrya had already heard of the murder that had just happened a few minutes ago in the outskirts of Shinjuku. Jenrya saw the passing of decades through Tokyo's eyes.</p><p>There was an organization called "Hypnos". It was founded on contrasting ideas: good intentions and hate.</p><p>The founder was a man named Yamaki Mitsuo. He made Hypnos, was its heart and soul. The secret organization cast a watchful eye toward the Digital World, but even Yamaki's foresight would fail him because of those working behind his back. Yamaki Mitsuo had been labeled a potential danger in computer banks and the knife was already in his back, it only needed a turn. Yamaki once had a niece. Takato felt his real body like it was far way.</p><p>Where was nothing? Jenrya could make the world nothing if he was ordered to. His influence could grow, expanding far beyond Tokyo. Several countries possessed nuclear weapons. Jenrya could destroy the world several times over if it was commanded – but <em>they </em>didn't want a dead world. A dead one was useless. Takato would be useless without Jenrya. The Juggernaut told him that they were bonded and it was so. Jenrya had been made to be perfect and Takato was born with flaws. They meshed well. A perfect match.</p><p>The merge went as scheduled.</p><p>It was a struggle to keep up with what was being thrown at Takato. There was so much he now knew, more that was he beginning to understand. He knew the pressure within, the pressure in the back of his mind, would keep on growing until it would break. Already the cracks were there. If it broke, everything would pass over him, like a wave. Would it be over? If he stopped fighting, would it all be over?</p><p>There was more. Ryo Akiyama was also a potential danger to the programmed goal. He had been to the Digital World before, and, unlike the others, he'd made it back home. The only human to do it. That alone made him dangerous. Ryo knew what happened several years ago, he knew of the other kids who went <em>in</em> but never returned. They were dead, cold like those bodies in the morgue. They hadn't been strong enough. Everything had been covered up. It had been an experiment and the test subjects had never been told they were participating in one. They died without knowing <em>why</em>.</p><p>But Ryo wouldn't be hunted because his partner was no longer with him. Ryo was safe. Just a human without his muscle.</p><p>
  <em> There was a hunt…?</em>
</p><p>Yes, a hunt. A hunt that ended four years ago when a little girl and her uncle were attacked by a Musyamon. But it would begin again soon. The cycle would begin again and this time it wouldn't be the cleanup of an experiment. This was the real thing.</p><p>This was what the Juggernaut was programmed for. Takato was everywhere – everything he saw and heard was from all around the huge sprawl of Tokyo. Kaminmon lurking about the shadows, searching for another Digimon. Kincaid looking at her malfunctioning watch with delight. And a third was resting in a large room behind locked doors, Kincaid's precious ring sitting on a table as he sat on his fore and hind legs, purple tail swishing lazily. Relieved to be in his real body for a change. The old war hero, once again bending tradition, playing at being a filthy human for the greater good.</p><p>The images switched elsewhere. Everything began a long time ago. Everything was planned. Jenrya would need to eat more and more to have enough energy to breach the barriers between the Worlds. The Juggernaut told him all of this, that day when the greyhound bowed its head in submission to let him pet it. But only now did he understand.</p><p>The pressure was almost at a breaking point.</p><p>
  <em> If I stop struggling against this…</em>
</p><p>What would happen?</p><p>
  <em> …would I find Jenrya?</em>
</p><p>Or would he only be carried away, thrown about and battered by so much knowledge, by everything that he saw and heard?</p><p>
  <em>If everything sweeps over me, if I submit…</em>
</p><p>He was close to breaking. There wasn't much time to make a decision.</p><p>There was no turning back. Waves of information crashed, meaningless as they buffeted him. Sounds were attacking Takato from all directions.</p><p>
  <em>Is there a choice?</em>
</p><p>No. There was never a choice, especially here. "Choice" wasn't subject to argument.</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya will be with me, I won't be alone.</em>
</p><p>Takato was needed. Jenrya couldn't do this without him. Jenrya waited.</p><p><em> But if I </em>am<em> eaten, if I chose wrong, will Jenrya reject me? Will he ever stop needing me?</em></p><p>That wasn't possible. Takato was too important to this whole plan – his Will had been the strongest out of the three Tamers. He was targeted first.</p><p>
  <em> The others? Are they worried?</em>
</p><p>It didn't matter. It was too late.</p><p>
  <em>I won't be able to cry or smile. I'll be alone if Jenrya isn't there. And if he isn't…</em>
</p><p>Everything shattered, spots of blue dancing in his vision.</p><p>
  <em>I'll break.</em>
</p><p>This was a one-way street Takato walked. He depended on Jenrya now: if he submitted, Jenrya would have to be there, for all time and then some. Whatever it took to make sure he wasn't lonely.</p><p>He couldn't see. Couldn't hear. The pressure blinded him, making Takato blissfully deaf.</p><p><em>So then this is it. This is how it will turn out. </em>Takato could feel his mind start to go lax. The information still coming through was a dull pounding sensation and Takato couldn't be hurt if he couldn't feel anything. There was only the numbness and Jenrya. Everything else faded away. Any remaining mental barriers were smashed in as everything at once – Tokyo's network of people, of machines – forced its way in. Remaining memories fought against the flow of information and were swept away by the force of the tide.</p><p>And then it was over.</p><p>There was nothing. He found it.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Outside, the city went wild. Lights blinked on and off for the past three hours, faster and faster, like thousands of demented strobe lights. Cars spun as their internal computers suddenly went out, careening to a stop. People were stranded in the subways. Buses crashed into whatever was in front of them. The TV screens glowing, blinding anyone nearby as the light intensified. Computer monitors went haywire, overrun with green binary. But in this room, it was dark. Nothing was happening.</p><p>Ryo Akiyama went with the easiest route. Rather than panic or stand there gaping, he'd simply unplugged everything in his room. Peace and quiet. Still, he could hear the earth-shattering noise outside the bedroom. Every now and then there was a crash, followed by the tinkling of broken glass. Far off to the east he could see a thick, greasy cloud of black smoke rising up against the night sky. Something was burning. Ryo gazed out the open window.</p><p>To some people, it might seem like the end of the world. A snort. <em>This is nothing. </em>Ryo didn't know why everything was acting up, but he had his own suspicions. It probably had something to do with what he'd heard in the Digital World, when he had returned for the last time. Could this be the beginning of this "grand move", which would be remembered in history? If that was the case, then this really was nothing. It would be over soon.</p><p>And then the rest of the population would get on with their lives.</p><p>Ryo closed the window after awhile. Since earlier today, he'd been thinking back to his conversation with the kid, Jenrya. Jenrya confused him more than he wanted to admit. For one thing, Jenrya didn't seem to be bluffing; he really did believe his Digimon, Terriermon, wouldn't go wild, that he was somehow different. But what if he was? Ryo frowned as he got to his feet, padding over to a dresser and opening the drawers. What if these kids were different than Ryo?</p><p>What if they had actually succeeded where he'd failed?</p><p>What if they did better than the kids before them?</p><p><em> Yeah right.</em> Ryo tugged on a turtleneck. <em>What a joke.<br/></em></p><p>Shrugging into an overcoat, Ryo headed out. His guardian wasn't here, which worked for him They kept assigning adults to watch over him for some reason. This new one wasn't so bad though. Tamayo kept out of the way, a quiet, shy presence who hovered in the background.</p><p>Stepping into his boots, Ryo left the small apartment, locking the door behind him. As soon as he left the building, he was hit by screeches and a high-pitched whine that wouldn't go away. Wincing, Ryo moved quickly down the sidewalk. The street lights had stopped doing their strobe-thing, but he wasn't sure if that was something to write home about just yet. The glow was high-intensity, humming louder as power to the bulbs increased, bright as the sun. Ryo shaded his eyes.</p><p>He better be quick, then. Pushing his way through panicked crowds surging past, Ryo forced a path through the sea of humanity trying to go the other way. He continued to push his way past. Whatever he thought about the Tamers, he had to make sure they were in one piece. Like it or not, they might be the only people who could stand a chance against what was coming.</p><p>So yeah, Ryo made it his business to know what he could about them, where to find them. Jenrya had been the easiest to find, especially when he lived this close. <em>Might as well make sure he's in one piece. </em></p><p>Ryo jogged to the corner of the street. The intersection was a jumble of crumpled cars, fire flickering at the bottom of the pile-up. A bus was rammed right into a lamppost, the front caved in from the force of impact. As he watched, people crawled out, some turning around and dragging others who were trapped out from the wreckage. The ruptured tank leaked all over the sidewalks into the street. Ryo couldn't see the driver anywhere.</p><p><em> What a wreck. Wonder how they're going to explain this one? </em>It would be a lame excuse – a power failure or something. Of course everyone would eat it up, no matter how pathetic it was. And then go about with their daily lives as if nothing happened.</p><p>Ryo turned away from the hellish scene before him, turning a cool gaze about the area. A woman staggered past him, missing a shoe as she cast a lost look around her. In the distance, a man in a business suit tossed his cell phone away with a look of horror: it rang higher and higher, the sound rising up to a shrill, screaming pitch. The cell phone shattered as it hit the ground and fell silent.</p><p>Further away from the crash it was easier to get by. Jenrya had to be somewhere close by: the kid always seemed to be in the thick of things. Carefully stepping around the remnants of a motorcycle, Ryo kept on walking, sniffing around for anything that might tip him off about what started all this. He was examining a buzzing TV screen through a store window and watching the rapidly scrolling binary, trying to read it, when someone called out to him:</p><p>"Ryo!"</p><p>Ryo glanced up. Jenrya was here, like he expected, and now the other boy was approaching him warily, his gray eyes suspicious. Ryo smiled, straightening. "Thought I'd find you here." He faced Jenrya, leaning against the railing. "What can I do for you?"</p><p>Jenrya pointed at the pile-up in the intersection. "What's all of this?"</p><p>Ryo shrugged. "I don't know," he said truthfully.</p><p>"I'm sure you don't." It was obvious Jenrya didn't believe a word he was saying, which was ironic because so far everything that Ryo said was the stone cold truth. "How is it everything's going screwball and you're so calm? People might've died!"</p><p>"People eat it every day. Take my word for it – this isn't what you should be worrying about."</p><p>Jenrya bristled. "Then what should I be worrying about?"</p><p>"For one thing, you shouldn't be hanging around here. Obviously it's dangerous," Ryo replied, gesturing at the crashed bus and the overturned truck. "I don't know if any cars are still functioning, but you could get hit. And besides I – " Ryo cut his own words off, tilting his head as he suddenly noticed something different. The buzzing from the lights was gone now, but the bulbs were glaring even brighter. <em>Uh oh.<br/></em></p><p>Jenrya had no time to speak as he was bowled over.</p><p>He hit the ground with a muffled "hey!" as Ryo tackled him. Everything exploded. There was a deafening, simultaneous <em>pop</em>, almost drowned out by the roar of the same thing happening throughout the whole city. Glass and sparks fell in a dense shower around them as the street lights blew out. The TV Ryo and Jenrya had been standing in front of was abruptly missing its screen along with a portion of the window, the melted insides reduced to slag. As Jenrya caught his breath, wide-eyed, Ryo rolled off him and popped to his feet. Ryo couldn't help but whistle in amazement.</p><p>"<em>Damn…</em>"</p><p>Jenrya got to his feet gingerly, holding his side. He hadn't expected Ryo to shove him to the ground like that. Not doubt he'd be feeling <em>that </em>in the morning. He stood next to Ryo. Just a few seconds ago, it had looked like it was in the middle of the day, but now the area was bathed in complete darkness. And, from the looks of it, so was the rest of Tokyo. The stars were visible over the silent city, and, except for the fires, there wasn't any light casting the sky that usual orange-purple tint.</p><p>"Power surge of some kind." Ryo said. "Looks like the show's over. Finally." Ryo surveyed the fire slowly consuming the pile-up, not making any moves to help the injured that were limping away from the warm glow. "It's gonna be interesting seeing how they explain this."</p><p>"What do you mean, 'they'?"</p><p>"Whoever wanted to sweep stuff like this under the rug before," Ryo ground a shard of glass to powder under the toe of his boot with a crunch. "But I can tell you whatever was responsible for this wasn't just some normal power surge. One alone wouldn't cause so much damage." Ryo looked up, glancing calmly at the wreck of the truck in the distance. "And that wouldn't explain the cars."</p><p>Ryo turned and began to head down the street, going back the way he came. Jenrya shouted after him.</p><p>"Where're you going?"</p><p>"Home. Nothing to see now." Ryo was disappearing into the shadows, about to round a corner. "Oh, and this is nothing, Jenrya. I'd keep that in mind if I were you, so don't get yourself bent up all over this."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>It was peaceful here. Nothing to see or know, nothing to hear. It was nice, this pure <em>nothing </em>Takato found himself in now. Everything was gone. As long as he didn't think back to it, he wouldn't start remembering all the new "memories" from the merge's beginning. Takato closed his eyes with an exhausted sigh. It was over. That had been the hard part.</p><p>
  <strong> Takato…</strong>
</p><p>He opened his eyes. It was so hard to do even that. They felt like so very, very heavy. But he knew that voice: Jenrya. Forcing himself to blink, Takato raised his head, staring up as he found himself looking up at Jenrya. Before he could even formulate a thought, Jenrya was already answering:</p><p><strong>You've done it, Takato</strong>. A smile. <strong>That was it. That was all you had to do. You're done.</strong></p><p>Takato nodded. He was so tired, so drained. Was it really over?</p><p>
  <strong> Yes.</strong>
</p><p>Takato let out a breath. It was good Jenrya was here. Jenrya made everything better. Jenrya could see everything better then he could ever hope to. Takato was so glad to see his friend again, his chest rising and falling as if he was having trouble breathing. It was finally over. Jenrya hadn't abandoned Takato, despite his initial fears. His friend kept his promise, kept it just for him.</p><p>
  <strong>Are you hurt? Why don't you rest awhile?</strong>
</p><p>Takato waved it away. No, no, he wasn't hurt. But he could use a few minutes of down time. Actually, he had no idea <em>why </em>was he was laughing, but it felt good.</p><p>Jenrya knelt down next to the companion system, static fuzzing the avatar's chest in and out as he moved. A scan: the merge further damaged Takato Matsuda. This would make the next step less difficult. Jenrya plopped down next to Takato, who was now shaking his head at some joke only he understood.</p><p>"You know, I keep getting you and the Juggernaut mixed up. It's funny."</p><p>Jenrya opened his mouth and uttered a soundless laugh, laughing right along with Takato.</p><p>Takato continued shaking his head, a grin on his face. Jenrya was such a great guy, he was willing to hang out with him even though he probably had better things to do. Of course, Jenrya was only laughing along with Takato because he needed him, but it didn't matter. Jenrya was amazing! Takato experienced what Jenrya did so easily, how Jenrya had no difficulty being in multiple places at once.</p><p>After awhile, Takato stopped laughing, although he was forced to bite his lip to prevent another uncontrollable giggle. He bit down so hard that he was soon bleeding from the self-inflicted wound. He didn't notice at first, didn't even notice the pinch of pain from his mouth. He was suddenly self-conscious as Jenrya turned those gray eyes on him, his gaze falling on the droplets of blood.</p><p>
  <strong> You bit yourself.</strong>
</p><p>A mumbled apology. He hadn't meant to. Was Jenrya angry at him?</p><p><strong>Of course not. But you shouldn't hurt yourself</strong>, Jenrya said. Takato hung his head. He hadn't meant to, he was sorry. Now Jenrya was mad at him because he did something he wasn't supposed to. <strong>It's okay. There's no need to apologize. I'm not mad at you. Look, I'm even going to make it go away for you.</strong></p><p>Takato nodded, obediently keeping perfectly still as the avatar slowly lifted a finger and touched the wound. As Jenrya passed his fingertip over the injury, it faded away, the blood turning into data particles and floating away. Jenrya leaned back as Takato clapped his hands to his mouth with a gasp, his eyes glassy. Takato's thoughts ran into each other: <em>Wow! I didn't know Jenrya could do that! He's so great. He did that just for </em>me<em>, he's not going to leave me, look, there's no blood – where did it all go? Oh, wait, I know, Jenrya ate that too…jeez, Jenrya's awfully hungry.</em>How did Jenrya stay so thin when all he did was eat?</p><p>Jenrya folded his hands around his knees. It wasn't long before Takato copied him, drawing up his own knees and clasping his fingers around them before looking to his friend for guidance. Jenrya rewarded him with another winning smile.</p><p><strong>You're awfully quiet</strong>, Jenrya remarked.</p><p>"Sorry, just have a lot of things on my mind," Takato said. Actually, it wasn't true, but he didn't know what to say. He just had to saw something, anything at all.</p><p>Jenrya saw right through him, as he always did. But he said nothing for a long while. There was nothing Takato could hide from him. No one could hide from Jenrya's many eyes and ears. Jenrya was everywhere. But, Takato realized with a swell of pride, Jenrya focused his attention solely on <em>him</em>. Maybe he was being greedy, but he liked it. It was nice to have someone to talk to.</p><p>There was a long pause. Takato pointed at his head, smiling sheepishly. "I think there's something wrong with me, Jenrya. I don't suppose you have some Band-Aids to tape me back together?"</p><p>Jenrya shook his head, never batting an eye at the remark. <strong>Nope. I'll have to get some later.</strong></p><p>Takato fiddled with his fingers, still looking hopeful. "Oh, okay. I can wait." He looked up at Jenrya, fixing a suspicious eye on Jenrya. "You really aren't the Juggernaut, are you?"</p><p>
  <strong> I am.</strong>
</p><p>Takato didn't seem to hear his friend's silent voice. "That's good. I hate it when people lie to me. When are you going to get my Band-Aids?"</p><p><strong>Soon</strong>. Jenrya said reassuringly. <strong>I have to go find them for you first. How does it feel?</strong></p><p>Takato shrugged. Why was Jenrya asking about him? Did it even matter how he felt? Did it matter that everything was all jumbled and weird? But Jenrya asked him a question and he didn't dare keep his mouth shut. After all, Jenrya was dangerous if he wanted to be, if he was ordered to be. Even though Jenrya was usually a nice guy, he carried a big stick, Takato realized, after comparing Jenrya to something a man called "Roosevelt" said once. Why was it all the dead people made more sense then the living?</p><p>"Uh, I feel kinda funny." Takato started to bite his lip and remembered that he wasn't supposed to. Pursing his mouth carefully, he continued, looking sideways at Jenrya. "Like I'm broken in places. Disconnected. I mean, the pieces are still there, I have to tape them back together. That's why I asked for some Band-Aids. Those things can stick on anything. Well, that or duct tape…" Takato added, falling silent at this new realization. <em>Duct tape.</em> Now there was an idea...</p><p><strong>I promise to get you some Band-Aids soon as I can</strong>. Jenrya chuckled silently. <strong>Or duct tape. Whatever you want.</strong></p><p>Takato beamed. "Thanks."</p><p>
  <strong>What else do you feel? </strong>
</p><p>"Feel sorta numb. Like I've been sitting in a tub of ice for a few hours. Disjointed. Like one of those really frustrating puzzles that always seem to be missing a bunch of pieces even if you just bought it." Takato fell quiet, losing his train of thought. Jenrya waited. "Sometimes I have a hard time putting two and two together. I'm sorry I'm like this, Jenrya – it just kinda <em>happened</em>. Is something wrong?"</p><p>Jenrya reached out and ruffled his hair, smiling warmly. <strong>No, everything's fine. I was curious.</strong></p><p>Takato pretended to pout. Jenrya wasn't being fair now! Takato wasn't a kid after all. He had a right to know what was going on!</p><p><strong>Of course not.</strong> Jenrya changed the subject discreetly. <strong>How exactly do you plan to tape yourself back together?</strong></p><p>Takato's face lit up and chattered away at Jenrya listened. The companion system began miming how he would fix himself up, going through the motions of applying dozens of Band-Aids on himself. It should be easy enough. Look, there was a piece of Takato and there was another one to the left. Ah, this one just dropped off! Oops, <em>this </em>part had a fracture in it. He'd better tape it right up before it could break off. As Takato continued to put imaginary Band-Aids on himself, pantomiming, he continued to talk: wow, it he was going to need a whole lot of them, because it looked like he could break into pieces if a wind came through. That wouldn't do. Oh no, not at all. And if Takato was having trouble – for there was a lot to fix – would Jenrya help him out?</p><p>
  <strong>I'd be happy to.</strong>
</p><p>"I'm happy…" Takato trailed off, his hands lowering as something clicked. His face turned serious, something flickering behind his eyes. Something of his old self. "Am I happy?"</p><p>
  <strong>You tell me.</strong>
</p><p>"I…I…" Takato stammered, horrified. Jenrya was here, and Takato wasn't alone. So why shouldn't he be happy?</p><p>
  <em> This…this isn't real. This isn't right.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I shouldn't be here. I've hurt myself with this lie.</em>
</p><p>Takato looked up as Jenrya got to his feet. The black jacket started another cycle, changing into the neon orange vest as the sleeves shortened. Where was Jenrya going? <em>Is he leaving? </em>Takato wondered with a start of sheer panic. The panic faded as Jenrya reached down, and, as one would treat a fragile baby, took his hands and pulled him to his feet. Takato wavered but managed to keep his balance as Jenrya paced a few yards away in the nothingness.</p><p>
  <strong> You're right. This isn't real, Takato. None of this is. I'm not here and you know it.</strong>
</p><p>No, that wasn't true. Jenrya had eaten all the lines, therefore he <em>was </em>here.</p><p>Jenrya made a dismissive gesture at this as he strode around Takato, glancing him over as the Tamer did his best to keep still under the inspection. <strong>You want to believe I am. You've damaged yourself on purpose. You hurt yourself to get to me.</strong></p><p>"I-that's not…" But it was. Takato could only feel shame as Jenrya circled about him, hands clasped behind his back. Takato hung his head for the second time that day, miserable. He had only himself to blame for needing tape to fix himself. Jenrya was disappointed.</p><p><strong>Will Band-Aids really fix what you've done to yourself?</strong> Jenrya asked. Round and round he went – Takato couldn't tear his eyes away from his friend, always circling. Jenrya saw everything. Jenrya heard everything. Jenrya knew everything. <strong>Do <em>I</em> mean that much to you? Or is it "hope" that matters to you?</strong></p><p>"I-I don't know," tears of embarrassment were starting to form. Takato was horrified to realize he was going to cry soon. He didn't <em>want</em> to cry, but he was going to do it anyway. If only he could crawl into a cave somewhere and hide. Jenrya was so very disappointed in him. It made Takato feel disgusted standing here.</p><p>
  <strong>Listen to me.</strong>
</p><p>He was listening.</p><p><strong>It doesn't matter if I'm not real.</strong> Jenrya stopped in his tracks, behind Takato and just out of his range of vision. The Tamer closed his eyes, trying to will away the tears glimmering between his eyelashes. Jenrya was so forgiving it was humiliating.<strong> You're here. And so am I.</strong> Jenrya drew Takato closer – as the avatar moved, his whole body began to run with static, the blotches of unfocused material expanding to cover his whole height. <strong>Why worry? You don't have a choice, I told you that once.</strong></p><p>Takato allowed himself to be pulled. Yeah. Why worry? He was beyond that now…</p><p><strong> It's time. </strong>Those hands dragged him into a bottomless pit; fingers dancing with strings of static pulling him insistently backward. There was no other choice but to relax and let himself be pulled. <strong>Companion system TAKATO MATSUDA. This is the finally stage of the merge between us. We're two different sentient beings but together we'll know only power. We become one.</strong></p><p>Takato kept his eyes shut. Jenrya was going to eat him now. But it wouldn't be like those digital lines. There was no return. Behind him, Jenrya took another step outward, his features indistinguishable in the static. <em>Jenrya won't leave me.</em>This was for his own good, after all – Jenrya truly cared and this was exactly why he wasn't going to delay any longer. This had to be done. Takato wouldn't complain. There was a wave of warmth as Takato was pulled into Jenrya. As he slid backward into his friend, he began to fade away – whatever came into contact with the Jenrya's touch was dissolving, getting absorbed...</p><p>
  <em> This is how everything's turned out. This is it...</em>
</p><p>The avatar continued to pull the companion system into himself.</p><p>Soon, there was only one standing in Jenrya's nothingness.</p><p>It was done. The merge was complete.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued...</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Picking up the Pieces</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After the Juggernaut's merge creates mass power outages, the Tamers, Ryo and Yamaki try to pick up the pieces.</p><p>Ryo is targeted by Kincaid for extermination. He's forced to pick sides.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(Picking up the Pieces)</strong>
</p><p>Yamaki Mitsuo had a hell of a day. It started innocently enough but got progressively worse. The high point would have to be that surge (or whatever it was) that blew out just about anything electronic in the building. Luckily, he'd been fast enough to order all the plugs pulled and power disabled before damages could escalate further.</p><p>Rubbing away a migraine, Yamaki wondered if maybe he should've just slept late, should've just said, "Screw the meeting. In fact, screw all of this".</p><p>This was the second time Hypnos was in the dark; Yamaki could only hope this wouldn't become a daily occurrence. However, he still had ajob to do and because he'd shut everything off before things started blowing up on him, they'd gotten off pretty light. It still meant salvaging. A lot of salvaging. The Yuggoth program had suffered a considerable amount of damage as well. <em>That</em> meant several all-nighters for the tech teams, who already had enough work just maintaining everything.</p><p>"Sir?"</p><p>Yamaki grunted, turning his face up toward the voice. The command deck was still completely dark. He'd sent an aide off to get some candles or flares, but he wasn't back yet. The circuit breakers weren't working either. "What is it?"</p><p>Reika's voice drifted down through the shadows. "Kei thinks we can work on restoring the files and programs as soon as the power returns."</p><p>"Which files did we lose?" Yamaki toyed with his lighter.</p><p>"We don't know, sir. There's no way of knowing for certain until we can run checks."</p><p>Well, that was <em>just</em> what he wanted to hear. The extent of the damage couldn't be determined until the damned power returned, and who knew how long <em>that </em>would take? Yamaki counted to ten. And then doubled it to twenty because he was still pissed by the time he reached nine. For some reason he wished he had one of those idiotic stress balls, just so he could throw it at something. There was really nothing to do but to wait until everything returned back to normal.</p><p>Yamaki hated waiting.</p><p>From his impression, a Digimon hadn't been responsible for this. There were no species he knew of that could, for three hours straight, create such an uproar over the whole city. The electronics hadn't just shut off or started backfiring. They became overrun with binary, the code incoherent babble, and so far he hadn't been able to decipher it. Even the lights implanted in Kei and Reika's goggles had started burning out, glowing brighter and brighter even as the two women hurriedly tossed them to the floor. Just in time too – the bulbs exploded only a few seconds later. Any way slower and someone would've been missing an eye.</p><p>Yamaki went back to rubbing away at his headache, running his fingers through his hair. This was just so damned <em>frustrating</em>. Every time he thought Hypnos made progress, something like this happened. And these weren't just little problems: these were huge setbacks.</p><p>This wasn't normal. And it only made him that much more suspicious.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>It was around 3AM when Tamayo Yonekura finally limped into her apartment. Glancing about as she pushed the door open, the secretary sighed and stepped out of her shoes. It was good to be home.</p><p>"Ryo?"</p><p>No answer. Well, he was probably asleep by now. Carefully easing her weight off her aching ankle, Tamayo closed the door behind her, straightening her glasses as she reached for the light switch. A frown. Nothing happened. Another try. The power was still out. Maybe it would be better in the morning. Tamayo was dead tired – it had been a wild day – but she wanted to check up on her charge.</p><p>Wincing as weight was put on her tender foot, Tamayo crossed the kitchen, dropping her purse on the couch as she limped down the hall. She was amazed her own apartment unit hadn't burned down or anything: she'd seen the fires several blocks down, the firefighters still working to put them out. Right now Tamayo counted her lucky stars. Her car had been totaled when it'd lost control for no reason, but she'd left with only a sprained ankle and a bruised shoulder.</p><p>"Ryo?" Tamayo peeked her head into the boy's room. It was still bare, despite the fact they'd lived in the apartment for several months now. Ryo lay in the shadows on his futon. From his slow, even breaths, it sounded like he sleeping. His guardian shut the door. She'd let the poor kid get some rest.</p><p>Maybe it would be better if she stayed in the living room. Ryo was a light sleeper and if she started making too much noise, he'd wake up. Tamayo went back the way she'd come, limping over to the dark, misshapen shape of the couch. Dropping herself down onto the cushions, the woman let out a long sigh. Now that she was back home, she began to realize how exhausted she was.</p><p><em>At least Ryo's okay</em>. That was her main concern. She was responsible for him, after all.</p><p>Lying down gingerly on the couch, Tamayo glanced toward Ryo's bedroom. He was unhurt, thank God. With everything that happened, she'd rushed home as fast as she could and it was a relief that she found him already there.<em> Ryo's a smart kid.</em> He was also a perfectly decent guy, no matter how much he tried to hide that, Tamayo reflected with guilty remorse. The problem was Ryo didn't let others get close to him anymore. It was difficult trying to coax him out of that shell he'd wrapped around himself and it didn't help Tamayo was far too shy herself to set much of an example. And she still didn't know just what happened when she'd first met him...</p><p>That had been a year ago. Of course, Ryo didn't remember their first meeting. He'd been too delirious at the time. Tamayo was shocked he was relatively normal after that whole thing.</p><p>A year ago she'd been driving down a long stretch of road on her way back from a family reunion. There wasn't a lot of traffic: basically easy going. She hadn't been paying much attention to the roadside and almost passed the body collapsed at the base of a sign. Upon pulling over, Tamayo discovered the "body" was still alive.</p><p>There wasn't any ID on him. The boy looked to be young, his face twisted in agony. He lay on his right side as he curled up against the sign pole and she hadn't seen the large injury from her angle, not at first. It'd been an ugly, bleeding gash stretching along his waist all the way up to his chest, coated with dirt and becoming visible as she gently rolled him over. Tamayo almost threw up at the sight of the infected wound. Somehow she managed to swallow the rising bile and call for help, fumbling with her cell phone, watching with horror as blood continued to form a sticky puddle under him.</p><p>What made the experience more surreal was the fact Ryo was conscious the whole time. His eyes fluttered and rolled backward until the whites showed. The kid babbled pure gibberish to himself, his voice incoherent with pain as he kept trying to get to his feet. Most of his words didn't make sense, but from Tamayo gathered, the boy didn't know where he was – something about a "Digital World" – and he didn't even know she was beside him. His eyes only continued to stare blindly over Tamayo's shoulder she tried her best to help him, cradling his body in her arms.</p><p>The kid rambled feverishly on and on as she tried to still his shaking arms. At one point, he'd philosophically wondered why he wasn't dead yet, that he should be by now, wondered why "he" attacked him in the first place. Theen he'd begun screaming a bunch of nonsensical names to himself as Tamayo propped him into a sitting position, frantically applying pressure to the blood oozing from his side with her hands, her blouse, her skirt, whatever was closest. He screamed and screamed…</p><p>It seemed like an eternity before the paramedics finally came over the ridge.</p><p>She could still hear Ryo. Even now, they echoed, those choked screams of his…</p><p>…those endless, animal screams…</p><p>They'd whisked the poor child away from her. One of them somehow pulled her along with the ambulance. Tamayo was too confused to resist. They asked her all these questions, but the dazed woman hadn't been able to answer many of them. No, she didn't know who he was. No, she wasn't a relative. Yes, she found him lying there. What was her name? Tamayo Yonekura. Twenty six years-old. She did the right thing by reporting this, another told her, he would be okay.</p><p>They hadn't lied. Ryo survived, though he was hospitalized for several weeks.</p><p>She visited as much as she could, leaving her work early so she could catch him before visiting hours were over. Most of his stay, he was asleep or so drugged he was completely out of it. As it turned out, this boy was a "Ryo Akiyama", from the other side of Tokyo. He disappeared from his home and had been missing until Tamayo found him. It was strange, though, a doctor confided in her. From what he'd heard, Ryo disappeared without a trace, as if he suddenly left in the middle of doing something. No eye witnesses. His parents had also vanished, but the explanation for <em>that </em>was they simply packed up and left the city several months after. There was no way to contact them. So he would have to be assigned a guardian.</p><p>Tamayo was too timid to volunteer at first. After all, she never had any kids of her own. How could you deal with one like this? What if she hurt the poor boy more? Ryo had been through enough. She might not be a good role model, she might not be able to support two people. Seeing Ryo finally alert a few weeks later made her quail even further.</p><p>Ryo was assigned another guardian.</p><p>She hadn't seen the kid for a while then. It was only several months afterward that they met again. Over that space of time, he burned through four volunteers, each complaining he was sullen. Impossible. Tamayo volunteered as soon as she could; she felt that she could understand what Ryo had been through. As far as Ryo was concerned, the first time he'd met a woman named Tamayo Yonekura was in a bland office where adults kept trying to pretend to be his parents and then shucked him off to another grown-up as soon as they got sick of him. This Tamayo was another stranger. She wasn't surprised when Ryo turned a suspicious eye on her as she drove him to her apartment. At first, things were off to a shaky start, but she was convinced things could work.</p><p>For one thing, he never insulted her. Ever. True, he wasn't the most...respectful of people, but he did keep his tongue checked whenever she was around. He sometimes dropped his self-centered façade every now and then when he was around her. Did Ryo hate her? She didn't think so; actually, she didn't know what Ryo thought of her. Despite the fact he usually pretended to be aloof, she had a feeling this was only a form of protection, like a threatened armadillo curling up into a ball. So then was Ryo scared of something? Or someone?</p><p><em>Whatever it is, he won't talk about it.</em> Instead of pursuing it, Tamayo would drop it every time. Every time <em>that </em>mocking grin appeared it meant Ryo remembered something from before that day they met. Tamayo didn't want to alienate him. For now she kept her mouth shut about finding him that one hot afternoon.</p><p>Maybe one day Ryo would open himself up to her. For now, though, he was still too suspicious to allow it and all she could do was wait.</p><p>It was still hard to believe the poor, half-dead kid then was the very same Ryo Akiyama currently living in her apartment.</p><p>One had been a ball of pain. Pitiful, terrified. The other was a cool, distant mirror of someone else.</p><p><em>What </em><em>happened to him? </em>She knew Ryo hadn't always been like that – from previous records she poured over, he appeared to be friendly before he was reported missing. <em>What could'</em><em>ve been so bad he completely changed his own personality?</em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ryo woke up late and totally missed his first class. Oops.</p><p>Sunlight crept through the blinds. Rooting about through his clothes, he pulled on some jeans. Finding a t-shirt, Ryo faced the mirror on the far wall and started to pull it on. And stopped, staring at his reflection with a frown. Sometimes he could almost forget all those scars on his side, a parting gift from serrated fangs when they tore into him. Silently he ran his fingers across the raised skin.</p><p><em> He's long gone</em>, Ryo scowled at his reflection. <em>Bet he's been deleted by now.</em></p><p>Yeah, well. That was then. If the past didn't kill you, the present could easily finish the job. It seemed like a good idea to keep both eyes open for what was coming. Ryo closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Would he be left alone if he kept trying to contact the Tamers, dropped a few hints to help them out? The fact that he hadn't been targeted for extermination by <em>them</em> said something. Apparently they didn't care about Ryo as long as he didn't try to reunite with his partner. Like he was literally the lowest on the priority list. It was almost insulting.</p><p>Too late to sit back. But he could still sit on the sidelines too. Real tempted. There were days he wanted nothing more than to go back to school and pretend he was a normal kid again. Like if he just kept his head down, he wouldn't be next on the hit list. Other days, though...the thing was, no matter what he thought of these new kids, he didn't want to see the same thing go down. After all, they weren't that much different from him. They were kids too. And things had escalated a lot since.</p><p>There wouldn't just be accidents and broken light-bulbs. Replace that with growing casualties.</p><p>If he thought it'd been bad in the Digital World, well...</p><p>A dry mental laugh<em>. How long are our days numbered</em>? A few weeks? A few months? Ryo wasn't a sadistic bastard: he didn't want to see people around him dropping like flies, no matter what impression he might give others. He knew what rumors were being whispered across the Digital World, that a call to arms was sounded. That this was bigger than the past Purges. The Digital World was in an uproar. Something was going to happen. Something big. Times like this, he wondered what a couple of kids could hope to achieve.</p><p>Ryo left his room and peeked into his guardian's room; the bed was still made and it looked like Tamayo hadn't slept in it. A twinge of an unfamiliar feeling tugged. Did she come back at all? Or had she been in one of those pile-ups from last night? If that was the case, what if she was still be out there? He better go look for her. Whirling around, Ryo stormed down the hall.</p><p>And nearly tripped over Tamayo's legs sticking out from the couch in the process.</p><p>Ryo let out the breath he'd been unconsciously holding. Tamayo was fasst asleep on the couch, the woman looking exhausted. He quietly stared down at her. She was still wearing the same clothes she left in and one of her sleeves had a tear in it, the shoulder frayed. Ryo leaned closer, his eyebrows knitting together.</p><p>Tamayo's eyes flared open then and she found herself suddenly face-to-face with Ryo. Giving a startled squeak, she sat up like a bolt. Ryo straightened as Tamayo sought to still her frantically beating heart, pressing her hands over her chest. Even as she watched, the self-confident mask easily slid over his face, hiding the unfamiliar expression just a second a ago. Tamayo groped blindly for her glasses, murmuring an almost inaudible "thank you" as Ryo handed them to her.</p><p>Tamayo fitted them on her nose, avoiding her charge's gaze as she began unbraiding her hair.</p><p>"When did you get back?" Ryo asked.</p><p>Tamayo focused her attention on her hair. "This morning…I'm sorry, I should've gotten back earlier, but my car ran into some trouble and I had to walk back."</p><p>"Is that so?"</p><p>"Yes." Ryo didn't believe her, she knew he didn't, why oh why wasn't she more responsible in the first place? Why did she think she could foster a kid? "…I'll…are you hungry?"</p><p>Ryo nodded.</p><p>"Okay," Tamayo dropped one of her unfinished braids. She got to her feet and began to make her way to the kitchen, trying to keep her hobble to a minimum, determined to keep it to herself until Ryo was gone. It was such a minor injury, surely it didn't need immediate attention. Besides, it didn't hurt that much. It wasn't serious.</p><p>But Ryo saw it anyway, despite her attempt to appear perfectly fine.</p><p>"What's wrong with your foot?"</p><p>Tamayo kept her back to him. Her shoulders tensed expectantly. "There's nothing wrong with it."</p><p>"You're limping."</p><p>"It's nothing," a flush of embarrassment crept up to color her cheeks. She didn't dare turn to face her charge. Tamayo knew she was lying. Ryo knew she was lying.</p><p>But what Ryo said next was completely unexpected:</p><p>"You need ice if you've got a sprain." And then Ryo brushed past her. Startled, Tamayo could only watch as he opened the freezer and began searching for ice, impatiently tossing packages of frozen peas and carrots to the counter. She stared at him as if he'd sprouted another head. "You should know better, Tamayo."</p><p>"I…well…" Tamayo trailed off, staring at her hands. Ryo always made her feel like <em>he </em>was the adult and she could only pull at the corner of her sleeve with a sheepish expression.</p><p>Ryo began dumping the ice cubes into a plastic bag. "Take a seat."</p><p>Tamayo obediently sat down, the blush growing. Ryo was going to chew her out now: it was rare he did, but he only did it when she did something extremely stupid (like forgetting to stock up the refrigerator) or she began working too late (she had a tendency to be a workaholic). Instead, Ryo sat down beside her and, without asking, took her hand gently in his and put the makeshift ice pack in her slack fingers. He then guided her hand to her swollen ankle with infinite patience.</p><p>"Keep the ice there for a while," Ryo told her. Tamayo looked up in open confusion from the ice pressed to her sprained ankle to Ryo. Ryo's face was once again wearing that amused expression, but his voice didn't have that same bitter, defensive snap to it. Instead, it was calm and controlled, almost kind. The ice pack started to slip from her stunned fingers and Ryo caught it before it fell, placing it back into her hand with the same gentle care as before. "You shouldn't let injuries sit like that."</p><p>Tamayo couldn't find anything to say. This was a new side to Ryo she was, quite frankly, unfamiliar with.</p><p>"How'd you sprain your ankle anyway?" Ryo asked her.</p><p>Tamayo stared at the ice pack. She shouldn't tell him…but the words were already spilling from her even as thought crossed her mind."I…it was a car accident. My car lost control last night and I ended up hitting a signpost. It's nothing," she insisted defensively.</p><p>Ryo's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly and for a moment a strange expression flicked across his face. It was gone so quickly Tamayo could only wonder if she was seeing things now. Had it been anger? Or something else entirely?</p><p>Why was he so concerned about this in the first place?</p><p>"But you're okay."</p><p>"I'm fine."</p><p>Ryo merely stared at her with those black eyes of his, and Tamayo couldn't help but squirm under them.</p><p>"You…" he trailed off. There had to be a better way to word this. After a moment of deliberation, he only frowned at her ankle, as if it was something that could've been avoided in the first place. "If things like that keep happening, you need to be more careful. You could get worse than a sprained ankle if you don't take care of yourself."</p><p>"I know. Thank you, Ryo."</p><p>Ryo pursed his lips. He couldn't tell Tamayo – or anyone – of his own experiences in the Digital World; adults wouldn't believe him and there was no way his guardian would understand his warnings. But he could definitely try to tell her to be more on the ball in the future,<em> to be ready</em>. Even if that might not mean a whole lot to a shy secretary, at least it was something.</p><p>He got to his feet gruffly as Tamayo looked up at him. The silence had grown uncomfortable, as it always did whenever they spoke to one another. Today it was because of unfamiliarity: Ryo wasn't at all sure why he was acting like his guardian was some sort of fragile kid (who was the adult here?) and he could only wonder when he'd started caring so much in the first place.</p><p>Wasn't she supposed to be just like all the others? So then why…?</p><p>Ryo turned away from Tamayo, speaking haltingly. "I got to go." The barriers were up again. He headed for the door and reached it. "Keep that ice on your ankle. You should stay off your feet until the swelling goes down."</p><p>Tamayo blinked as the door shut behind Ryo. Just what happened? She looked down at the slowly melting ice in the plastic bag pressed against her ankle. What possessed Ryo to help her like that? He'd never done anything like this before and this departure from the norm was confusing. For a moment, Tamayo had been sure he was angry. Not at <em>her</em>, but at something else, something else he had control over. Had she imagined this whole thing?</p><p>Another glance at Ryo's ice pack.</p><p>It was still there.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya was <em>beyond</em> tired. If there was a zone past exhausted, he'd be there. Last night he ended up walking the entire way because nothing worked. No buses, no cars, no subway.</p><p>Fun times.</p><p>Sitting with his head resting in his arms, Jenrya wondered if he was going to doze off in the middle of the class. He hoped not. The conversational murmur was muted today; half of the class was missing because the trains and buses still weren't working and it would take a day or so to fix them. Mr. Mori himself wasn't even there yet. Jenrya was still wondering why he hadn't done the smart thing and slept in late. Could've gotten away with it, just this once.</p><p>"Is Jenrya tired, woof?"</p><p>Jenrya didn't raise his head as what felt a lot like a puppet tapped him on the back. "Very tired."</p><p>A bark of a giggle.</p><p>"Bwoof, Jenrya should've stayed home today!" Juri's puppet pretended to nip him on the shoulder. "Juri heard today is only going to be a half day!"</p><p>Jenrya raised his head, blinking blearily at Juri and her perkiness. She grinned.</p><p>"Sorry, Juri. Didn't get any sleep last night."</p><p>Juri plopped down next to him. "Last night was scary!" She set down the puppet, her legs kicking idly as she leaned on the surface of a nearby desk. "But I'm glad it's over. My dad was really upset – he's gotta replace all the light bulbs in the house and the TV and the computer..." she paused, scrunching up her face in thought. "Oh, and someone rear-ended our car in the driveway!"</p><p>"Jeez! Everyone okay?"</p><p>Juri nodded. "Yup! We stayed home. Actually, it was kinda fun – we ended up using a buncha candles and played all these games."</p><p>"Lucky. I ended up walking home," Jenrya groaned back into his arms, his forehead thudding back down. Juri only laughed good-naturedly. She had a point. Last night didn't change the fact they still had stuff to do the next day. His father was called into work at the crack of dawn and he was long gone by the time Jenrya finally crawled out of bed. Terriermon decided to leave the Lees' house today: he said he'd go keep Guilmon some company. And that Jenrya <em>had</em> to come with plenty of bread and pastries.</p><p>A mental curse. He still had to do something about Guilmon, so –</p><p>"Morning, Ryo!"</p><p>Jenrya glanced up at Juri's voice, peeking over the crook of his arm. Ryo let himself into the classroom, sliding open the door and striding in with his usual cocky gait. A frown. Ever since that bizarre meeting last night – sheesh, his side was <em>still</em> hurting – Jenrya was only confused. Why was Ryo waiting for him? Jenrya was so sure Ryo wasn't concerned about whatever was happening now, but then he'd turned around and tackled him like that. He'd probably be sitting in the ER because of that exploding TV if Ryo hadn't saved him.</p><p>Jenrya watched out the corner of his eye as Ryo wound his way past the small clumps of chattering students and parked himself at his desk. It was as if nothing happened last night. As if Ryo was above it all, untouchable. He leaned back into his seat, not even bothering to spare a glance at Jenrya. At the moment, Jenrya was too exhausted to be offended; 'sides, he was wondering if he'd been too quick in judging the other boy.</p><p>He accidentally nodded off when an unfamiliar man finally stepped into the classroom. Jenrya sleepily raised his head as the new teacher faced the class.</p><p>"Mori was unable to make it today, children," he held up his hands, frowning underneath his bushy mustache until the last question died down and it was quiet enough so he could continue. "I'll be replacing him. My name is Yuuto Kanemaru." He folded his hands over his stomach, eyes roaming the half-empty classroom. "Any questions?"</p><p>Hirokazu's hand shot up. "Do we really have a half-day, Mr. Kanemaru?"</p><p>"Yes, you'll be getting out at 1:30 today," Kanemaru pointed to the next hand waving desperately for attention in the back. "You."</p><p>"Um, will we have to…?"</p><p>Jenrya eventually went back to sleep at this point. He woke up only to find they were working in their prospective groups again and Mr. Kanemaru with his head buried in a newspaper. He followed Juri back to the square of desks, rubbing at his eyes in an attempt to wake up. Hirokazu and Ryo were already there, the taller boy looking bored with his arms crossed over his chest. Jenrya sat down next to Hirokazu as Juri immediately took charge – her puppet began chattering about how to put everything down on a poster board that she'd laid out on her desk. The group set to work.</p><p>Jenrya kept an eye on Ryo as the class ticked by. Today he seemed distracted with something and the other boy would only grunt a brief response whenever Hirokazu asked him a question. Was Ryo on their side? He'd been so sure he wasn't, but now…well, he didn't know what to think.</p><p>A sidelong glance. Ryo was watching the others with that same amused expression, but there was something distant in it, too. It was impossible to guess what he was thinking. Ryo simply sat back and observed the three students. Like studying the normal kids in the room through plexiglass. Jenrya pulled his attention away. He'd have to talk to Ryo again. Whatever Ryo Akiyama knew, it would inevitably draw him into what Jenrya was already neck deep in: he couldn't always take a step back and let everything pass by him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid was grinning from ear to ear by the time she pushed open the Yuggoth's deck door. Reika shot a stare as her coworker practically danced in. Yamaki was in one of his usual bad moods (damn, the guy had a perpetual storm-cloud hovering over his head) but she wasn't fazed as she threw a mock salute.</p><p>"Kincaid Donovan, reporting in."</p><p>Yamaki looked up from his PDA at her voice. Giving an order to the tech crew working on repairs, he motioned her over. He was already scowling. He always did that, the scowling.</p><p>"You'll be working with these three," Yamaki told her, not even trying to hide the pained expression.</p><p>"Sure thing!" Kincaid gave a thumbs up. "I'm on it."</p><p>"You'll be replacing the wiring for these panels," here he gestured at a row of machines housed in their casing, "and then you'll be assisting the team with whatever they need to work on next."</p><p>"Sounds like fun."</p><p>Yamaki made a face at this. <em>"Fun"</em>? This wasn't a time for fun. Shaking his head, he pointed out which types of wires would have to be replaced and then gave his usual threat to Keep Out Of His Way.</p><p>Reika looked up from her terminal as Yamaki left the four to their work and approached her. Yamaki was in a bad mood and she wisely kept her mouth shut as he flopped down in the seat next to hers, slamming his PDA down. Kei discreetly moved away from the two, wandering out of earshot. Whatever went on between Yamaki and Reika was none of her business. Good.</p><p>"At the rate everyone's moving, we're not going to be back online for two, three days."</p><p>Reika kept her focus on her screen, running through the checks. "Everyone's going as fast as they can, sir."</p><p>Yamaki growled in the back of his throat, leaning against the armrests of his chair. "Should've been more prepared for this," he glanced at Reika. "I should've written a procedure for a full failure."</p><p>"But you didn't."</p><p>Yamaki didn't explode at what would normally count as sarcasm, instead nodding to himself. Reika had a point. She usually did. Unlike him, she didn't dwell on the past, so she was quick to point out mulling over it couldn't change what already happened.</p><p>"I didn't," he agreed. "Now I will because of this."</p><p>Next time he would be far more prepared than this time. Hypnos could (and would) recover from this. This was only a temporary setback, but that didn't detract from the fact it was still frustrating. Yamaki shielded the flame rising from his lighter with his palm as he lit a cigarette, watching the clusters of different tech crews huddle around their work. Next to him, Reika swiveled in her chair, her arms folded on the desk in front of her as she glanced over her shoulder. The two gazed at the others, the silence stretching out for several minutes.</p><p>Reika was the first to speak up.</p><p>"Are you going to be needing me tonight, sir?"</p><p>"Yes."</p><p>They fell back into silence again. She already read his mind. Reika knew him so well she could read into his expressions with little difficulty; the way he moved probably betrayed how he felt more than his own face. Yet another indicator that he'd stayed with Reika too long, leaving Yamaki to wonder why he didn't move onto someone else. Reika was good – very good, a lot better than most – but there were others out there who could put even her to shame. <em>And </em>they didn't ask uncomfortable questions. A sudden thought.<em> Don't tell me I'm starting to get attached to this woman</em>. The very idea. Ridiculous! Yamaki wasn't interested in a relationship, he'd said so dozens of times. He was certain Reika felt the same way.</p><p>They were just "business associates". <em>We just happen to want the same thing.</em></p><p>End of story.</p><p>The end of his cigarette glowed red as Yamaki took a drag, glancing aside at Reika. As women went, she was beautiful – Reika also had a brain, which she used like a weapon when she decided to pry into his life. Most of the women he'd been with hadn't hadn't made it a hobby to get under his skin. None kept him on his toes as Reika did. Reika was one of a kind. Intelligent, skilled at what she did. Sometimes he wondering what a woman like her was doing working for him when she could get a higher salary and less hours employed to someone else. When you worked for an organization like Hypnos, you couldn't expect to get big bonuses.</p><p>As long as she did her job, it didn't matter. As long as Hypnos functioned properly and continued to delete Digimon before they become a menace to society, Yamaki didn't really care what Reika's motives were.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Terriermon tried not to panic. He was <em>so </em>in trouble! Jenrya was gonna kill him!</p><p>He didn't know how he did it, but he lost Guilmon.</p><p>The Rookie peered again into the shed, triple-checking. Guilmon was gone and it bugged Terriermon that he had no clue where to. Now that he thought about it, Guilmon <em>had</em> been acting weird. He was very listless, even when Terriermon began balancing on his head to cheer him up. Guilmon had said very little, his amber eyes slightly clouded as he stared at nothing in particular. Nothing Terriermon did got him to lighten up. Almost as if he was distracted…</p><p>
  <em> Maybe he's sick?</em>
</p><p>Jenrya was definitely chewing him out. Definitely. How'd this even happen? Terriermon only left the shed for a minute or two to check out this cool kite in the distance and when he came back, Guilmon was gone.<em> I'm so in trouble</em>, Terriermon chewed nervously on his stubby claws, his eyes flicking from the depth of the den to the gates. Even after he ran around the park trying to find the other Rookie, he came up with empty paws.</p><p>Guilmon vanished to who knew where.</p><p><em>How am I going to explain </em>this<em> to Jenrya?</em></p><p>Terriermon couldn't sit here – he had to go tell his partner, even if it meant leaving his post.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>It looked like the wind was picking up. The weather had been acting weird for a while: by tonight, the winds would probably reach hurricane strength. It would be dangerous being outside and Jenrya wouldn't be surprised if it even started to hail. The weather guys couldn't explain it. It could easily become as calm as the eye of a storm, become dry instead of humid and then do a huge u-turn. You just never knew anymore.</p><p>Jenrya ran up the flight of stairs, taking the last few two at time. As soon as classes were over, he went searching for Ryo. Most of people avoided going up to the roof, but from what little Jenrya knew about the new guy, he wasn't like "most people". Jenrya mounted the last step and threw his weight against the door, pushing it outward as it opened on rusted hinges. A blast of cold air hit him as he stepped out onto the roof of the school's main building.</p><p><em>There he is. </em>Ryo stood near the far edge, one hand resting on the chain links of the perimeter's fence as he gazed off into the distance, his back to Jenrya. Jenrya pursed his lips and strode across the gravel, his shoes crunching as he closed the distance between them. Ryo didn't turn around. It was only when he came to a stop a few feet away the other boy spoke up with a thoughtful drawl.</p><p>"Doesn't it frustrate you, how unpredictable everything is these days?"</p><p>Jenrya blinked. Was this some trick question? A bitter smile was on Ryo's face as his fingers tightened against the fence.</p><p>"The weather, Digimon, even people. They're all so random. They can change like this." Ryo snapped his fingers.</p><p>"What's your point?"</p><p>Ryo only smiled and shrugged. His back was still to Jenrya. "Just thinking. Forget it," he turned to face Jenrya. "So you found me. Congrats."</p><p>Jenrya frowned. Best to go for it. "Why don't you want to get involved?"</p><p>"Because I did once and it got me nowhere. Bad memories, y'know," Ryo replied. His eyebrows drew down, his face darkened for fleeting second. "And it's also none of your business."</p><p>Jenrya wasn't fazed. "What was going on last night?"</p><p>"It's over, isn't it? I told you, I don't know how it happened, but I think I know what it means."</p><p>"What?"</p><p>"<em>They're </em>putting their plan into action," Ryo shifted his weight against the fence. "But that was only the beginning."</p><p>"What about Takato? Where is he?"</p><p>"Beats me. I also told you that. I only know whoever's running around looking like him isn't someone to mess with."</p><p>Jenrya's frown grew. He'd already figured this out now, thanks to Ruki. Something happened to Takato that night he disappeared. And now there seemed to be another Takato, one that didn't act at all like him – that he also knew. <em>I need to know more than this</em>. There had to be more…but was it Ryo that had all the answers? Or someone else he wasn't aware of? Well, he'd have to see what he could get from the boy standing in front of him. It was better than nothing, and Jenrya would never forgive himself if he found out later that something could have been done, if only he'd been on top of things.</p><p>"Real unfair I'm answering all your questions and getting nothing back," Ryo drawled. "Now it's your turn."</p><p>Jenrya was on his guard. "What?"</p><p>"Do you know what pain is, Jenrya? I don't mean sadness over a dead pet. Or tears over a sprained arm. I'm talking about real pain. Know what it feels like?"</p><p>Jenrya was completely taken aback. What kind of question was this? What did that have to do with right now? Ryo nodded, like his silence said all it needed to.</p><p>"Yeah, didn't think so." Ryo snorted. "Most people don't. Lucky. Sooner or later luck runs out." He tilted his head, taking in Jenrya. "Just saying."</p><p>"Get to the point."</p><p>Ryo only chuckled. "Whatever. I'm not your mom." Another shrug. "As I already said, I was involved with this crap before. By jumping into like some hero, you're just putting your life on the line and you'll drag in others. And if you get killed, then who's going to be there to protect what you care about? Sometimes it's smarter to step back and take the time to actually <em>look </em>at the whole picture. Live carefully and you'll survive another day."</p><p>"You could fight with us, Ryo," Jenrya said quietly. "We need all the help we can get."</p><p>Ryo went silent at this, his smirk fading as he stared at the Tamer. Shaking his head, he turned to the fence again, now serious as he regarded the city sprawling past it. He looked up, as if composing himself.</p><p>"I can't. Got my reasons."</p><p>Jenrya was blunt. "Why?"</p><p>Ryo's shoulders tensed, his fingers clenching at the fence links. "Because I might end up fighting against someone I don't want to. This time I have to sit on the sidelines," he glanced over his shoulder at the other boy, his face expressionless now. "I don't really care if you understand me or not. But I can't get even more involved, not unless I have no other choice. Not when there's other alternatives. Not yet."</p><p>"Then <em>when</em>, Ryo? When it's too late?" Jenrya spat.</p><p>It was inevitable, wasn't it? Maybe he'd change his mind. But what if Ryo did go along with these new kids, if he did join them? What if...<em>he</em> showed up? Ryo was the first thing he'd zero in on, a familiar face in a sea of strangers. <em>He</em> wouldn't rest, then, until he'd finished the job. Ryo would be dead within minutes if <em>he </em>found the boy again. And what use would Ryo be if he was killed? But what if innocent people – such as Tamayo – were involved? Then what? Would he still sit back and pretend he was neutral? Maybe there were some good points to "jumping into the fray", as Jenrya suggested. If it was one life compared to the many…well…did it matter, then, if he suddenly disappeared again?</p><p>But this time he wouldn't be able to come back. Tamayo might even miss him for doing the right thing. But it was better him than her…</p><p>Ryo actually sighed, for a moment sounding tired.</p><p>"I'll think about it. That's all I'll do for now."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>So this was what it was like to be one.</p><p>
  <strong>All systems online.<br/></strong>
</p><p>There was so much to do. But they had plenty of time. Machines didn't age.</p><p>
  <strong>Awaiting further instructions.</strong>
</p><p>There was no "he". There was just "them". Just "it". Just one consciousness.</p><p>
  <strong>…?</strong>
</p><p>Someone was there? She was going to enter their chambers.</p><p>One of the cameras over the sealed door swiveled: a purple-haired woman approached it, glancing up at the curving lens and giving a little wave as the camera focused on her face.</p><p>
  <strong>Intruder identified as KINCAID DONOVAN.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> AGE: 28.<br/>GENDER: Female.<br/>HEIGHT: 5 foot, 4 inches.<br/>WEIGHT: 129.5 pounds.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong> SPECIES: Non-Human. </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>CLEARED.</strong>
</p><p>The coils stopped roiling. Their creator was here.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid pulled herself from the crack she'd pushed her malleable form through and was rewarded with the overhead lights flaring on with a life of their own, the screens around her lighting up in a sort of greeting. Her lips curved in delighted grin. The Juggernaut was fully aware and operational. And on schedule, too. No doubt the whole fiasco yesterday was the Juggernaut's doing. The woman stepped past the row of glowing monitors, her brown fur solidifying into human hair again as she moved further into the heart of the supercomputer's chamber. Approaching the Juggernaut, she gazed up at it with a smile of pride, her hands on her hips.</p><p>"I've new instructions for you," she called. "Tonight a Golem will come to you. Delete it and absorb the energy it carries."</p><p>The screens blinked on and off in an affirmative.</p><p>Kincaid reached into her pocket and retrieved the flash drive. "This has the rest of your orders. The Council has accepted my nomination for you. If you are voted as the Sword, you'll have to cooperate with the Shield. Keep any threats to the mission to a minimum. Dispose of threats any way you want."</p><p>A satisfied whine from the computers surrounding the Juggernaut. Kincaid held out the flash drive. A wire snaked up from a small hole drilled through the floor. It slowly curled around the flash drive, then turned in midair and wove a lone path toward the Juggernaut. <em>It's fully functional. </em>It was almost beautiful, actually. It was because of the boy that the Juggernaut had the ability to move now, to control whatever it was commanded to. A human Will, put to good use. Underneath the city lurked the cables, the wires, all the electronics the Juggernaut now had complete control over. A whole series of interlocking networks creating a large spider-web under Tokyo's streets.</p><p>The flash drive disappeared into a mass of writhing coils as the Juggernaut opened its plates just enough to admit this new "gift". They closed as soon as it was safely inside.</p><p>It was amazing the Juggernaut was already looking out for its own survival. The cautious way it only opened itself to let the flash drive in spoke volumes: it kept the main body of the supercomputer protected, keeping its own "heart" away from any possible interference. She doubted she would be able to check up on the personality matrix now, even though she was the machine's creator. After all, the Juggernaut was now looking out for its own interests, now that it had become more "aware" of itself.</p><p>Kincaid looked down at one of the monitors. Text rapidly scrolled across, asking her a question.</p><p>"Why did I nominate you?" Kincaid shrugged. "You can cover more area than any of the other candidates, for one thing. And, unlike them, you can be in more than one place at a time. Besides, you have a home field advantage."</p><p>
  <em>The Shield had been nominated, yes?</em>
</p><p>"It's been decided. He'll be biomerging in the waters near Rainbow Bridge."</p><p>
  <em>So this Shield operative only needed create the physical barrier around the whole perimeter of Tokyo.</em>
</p><p>Kincaid laughed, giving the screen in front of her a motherly pat. "Of course. He's not gifted like me," she preened a little bit. "If you're chosen, you'll have to access your new dual system." The woman reread the next line of text. "You can't use the Digivice unless you do so, so no. Yes. Where is he now? In the tunnel? Okay…no, it's fine with me. Keep him out of sight until I can confirm your position. You'll have to make him digivolve to clean up the other pests running around."</p><p>
  <em>Other pests being the children with the Digimon. The humans that were breaking the taboo.</em>
</p><p>"Precisely. They're high priority."</p><p>
  <em>The Juggernaut would terminate them as soon as possible.</em>
</p><p>"Great," Kincaid beamed. "Glad that's settled. The Shield will be here by tomorrow afternoon. As soon as he's ready, you can begin with the clean-up. Try to keep it neat. No messes, if it can be prevented. Yes…yes. That's fine. Me? I'll be running a test tonight regarding the Golem I've called for. It will…"</p><p><em>…it will seek out a host and absorb the energy</em>, the Juggernaut's text interrupted her.</p><p>"Good guess. You don't have enough power to make the breach, so we'll need to harvest more first," Kincaid replied. She rewarded the Juggernaut with a wink. "If it's successful, I'll have some more Golems brought in. You have to delete them like you would a Digimon. But you'll leave any Digimon who aren't accompanied by a human <em>alone</em>…I mean it. No unnecessary deletions."</p><p>The previous text was replaced with a short line: <em>very well</em>.</p><p>Did she imagine it was disappointed?</p><p>"Oh, and there's something else," Kincaid snapped her fingers. Now she remembered! There was someone who was posing a problem because recent developments were causing him to reconsider his neutral position. Nagamora had brought that up. "It came to my attention there's a boy living in Shinjuku by the name of Ryo Akiyama. He could be difficult if he's not dealt with quickly. Kill him."</p><p>Certainly. When would this need to be done?</p><p>"Now. Keep a low profile, but get rid of him."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya had a way of getting under your skin, didn't he?</p><p>At first Ryo thought remaining neutral was the best thing to do. If he remained out of the picture, then he wasn't responsible for anything that might happen. Wasn't his problem. But then Jenrya had gone for the real meat of it - what would happen if he did nothing. There was no way he could know that was exactly what Ryo had started to wonder.</p><p>It could get worse just because he did nothing. Ryo shook his head, watching the setting sun from the roof. A part of him regretted making contact with Jenrya Lee.</p><p><em>But what can I do?</em> Ryo didn't have a partner anymore. Sure, he still had his D-Arc. So? It was true he didn't know a every single thing Digivice could do, but he didn't think that it would help him very much, even though it did have limited self-defense capabilities. Ryo had no weapons. Only what he knew. <em>But maybe that's enough.</em> After all, there were all those rumors that he'd caught wind of and rumors generally had a ring of truth in them, so…<em>They really </em>are<em> going to attempt a breach</em>. It was true humans had the advantage of greater numbers, but numbers meant nothing if they got caught with their pants down.</p><p>If the Digital World got the jump on them, fired the first shot...he wondered if he would be able to count the dead.</p><p>Ryo drew in a deep breath, his dark eyes focused on the sun sinking into past the skyscrapers. There had to be another way. Ryo assumed a fight was only possible once the enemy arrived in full; if anything, that would be a last ditch effort. But what if it could be prevented <em>before</em> it happened? <em>"Take care of the threat while he's still preoccupied and your chances of victory are higher. Bite off the head and the body dies." </em>Yeah, he remembered being told that, long ago. <em>He</em> told Ryo to take advantages of any weaknesses, to do whatever it took to win the battle.</p><p>And then he'd gone right around and mauled Ryo right after.</p><p><em>Of course, he didn't bite off my head. Tried</em>. It had been unusually sloppy, but Ryo had lived, despite his injuries. But that wasn't the point.</p><p><em>So if we start fighting before they actually make the breach and start coming in by the thousands, we might have a better chance</em>. Casualties would be lower too. It meant Ryo would have to put himself in danger if he joined with Jenrya. Digimon were bio-emerging in greater numbers. It was only a matter of time before his own partner showed up.</p><p>If Ryo agreed, he'd be targeted.</p><p>And it wouldn't be just his partner out for Ryo's blood.</p><p>They would order his elimination as soon as he went active. So far, he'd been lucky <em>they</em> decided to overlook him simply because he kept to himself.</p><p>Ryo was so deep in thought he didn't notice the scrapping sounds behind him. Two of the electric lines running up the roof exit slowly worked their way out of their supports, writhing until the nails popped out. The last one fell silently against the gravel as the thin cables plopped down, one after another. Ryo's back was still turned as they began to snake toward him...</p><p>There wasn't as much time as he'd thought. It seemed like Ryo had little choice but to consider the fact he needed to choose and - Ryo froze, his eyes flaring open. There it was again. That strange sound he'd dismissed only a second ago. He was immediately on his guard.</p><p>He whirled around as a cable rose up, winding itself around his legs and tightening.</p><p>Ryo fell flat on his back. He scrambled to his feet in response, grabbing at the fence. Something traveled up his trapped legs. With a sudden motion, the end of the coil snapped out and grabbed his left wrist, tugging it down with surprising strength and causing him to lose his grip on the fence. Gritting his teeth, Ryo struggled to free himself. With one hand, he reached into his pocket. His fingers closed about the cold surface of his D-Arc, thumbing a button as the thing around his wrist began wrenching his whole arm back. He pressed the screen of the D-Arc against the coil.</p><p>It slackened when the D-Arc came into contact with the cable around his legs. As the two touched, a bright silver spark jumped between the D-Arc and the surface of the wire, emitting a loud shriek. Another shock and he was able to kick the stunned things off his legs.</p><p>Ryo heaved himself to his feet, his face drawn in pain as the other cable continued to pull his wrist behind his back with inhuman strength. Even now, the stunned wire at his feet began to revive, the drugged snake-like movements quickening recovered.</p><p>But before he could retaliate with his D-Arc, the wire was abruptly around Ryo's free hand in a flash. It quickly wrapped around his wrist even as he threw his weight forward, trying to pull away. It tightened like a python. His trapped hand twitched as blood circulation cut off, the D-Arc gradually forced from fingers he couldn't control. It went bouncing away. His right arm was slowly being twisted around, no matter how much he fought back against the two cables wrapped around his arms, pinioning them back. Ryo gritted his teeth, starting to see spots of pain in his vision...</p><p>"Ryo!"</p><p>Instantly recognizing the voice even through the haze, Ryo snarled: "It's me they're after, Jenrya! Stay out of this!"</p><p>But Jenrya refused to listen. A clear, non-human voice suddenly shouted above the rasps of the coils.</p><p>"<em>Gargo</em> <em>Laser</em>!"</p><p>The coils suddenly loosened their hold. Ryo dropped like a stone. He fell on numb hands. Looking up as he started to push himself to his knees, he ducked as one of the cables rocketed overhead, shooting toward Jenrya and the Digimon at his side. Gargomon easily knocked away the attacker, his button nose twitching as it whipped around and wrapped around the barrel of one of his arms. With a bellow, he jerked the coil taut and applied the business end of his other gun-arm to the wire. It exploded as he emptied his ammo into it at point-blank range.</p><p>Ryo glanced up, his eyes going wide as he noticed the other cable shooting toward him again. He rolled away as it plunged into the gravel with as much force as a bullet right where his head was only seconds before. Where was his D-Arc? These things were trying to divide and conquer: while Jenrya and his partner were busy with the other attacker, he'd get finished off by this one.</p><p>The weaving wire closed in again, forcing Ryo to roll in the opposite direction. His fingers fell upon a handful of gravel and with a quick motion, he threw it at the coil. It snapped at the flying pebbles for a moment, deflecting them with rapid hits. Ryo scrambled over to where he'd seen his D-Arc fall, turning on his back with it in his hands in time to see the cable lunging at him again. He barely managed to dodge and it went into the floor again. Ryo's D-Arc pressed into the wire and shocked it with such force it went dead as the spark flared like a lightning bolt.</p><p>Ryo sat back, breathing hard as he warily nudged the coil with the side of his boot. No movement. He fought to catch his breath, chest heaving as he stared down at the limp wire. It was just a wire again. But whatever it had been before, it had been definitely trying to kill him.</p><p>"You okay?" Jenrya ran over as Ryo leaned back on his hands and tried to catch his breath. The adrenaline was still there, buzzing away, and he was tense all over. This wasn't good. Whoever had sent these things knew about him. Ryo glanced up at Jenrya.</p><p>"Yeah...yeah."</p><p>Jenrya looked shaken as he held out a hand to help the other boy up. Unsurprisingly, Ryo rejected the offer, getting to his own feet. The two were joined by Jenrya's partner, who, Ryo decided (having given him a good look-over), was a pretty big Gargomon. The Champion was checking his barrels, seeing how much ammo he had left as he came to a stop, towering over the humans. Ryo stooped down, picking up the D-Arc he'd dropped. God, his arms were <em>killing</em> him. If they were sore now, he hated to think what they might be like later. Ryo suddenly noticed Jenrya was no longer looking at him, but staring at was in his hands.</p><p>"What?" Ryo asked.</p><p>"You have a D-Arc too?"</p><p>"Sure," Ryo said. He tried to turn it on, but the LCD screen remained blank. Damn. He'd used up all the power driving away those things. It would be at least several days before it recharged, which didn't make it very useful. It would be dead weight until then, exactly why he hadn't used it much in the past. "I've always had one."</p><p>Gargomon cast a curious look at Ryo. "Uh…who's this, Jenrya?"</p><p>"Gargomon, this is Ryo Akiyama." Jenrya said hurriedly. He looked like he was dying to know where Ryo's partner was, still turning the fact he had a D-Arc over in his mind. "Ryo, Gargomon."</p><p>Ryo only gave the barest of nods, pocketing his D-Arc. Both he and Jenrya knew this wasn't the time for a conversation. In fact, Ryo wasn't comfortable sticking around here, not when there might be more of those things coming after him. It was already troubling they'd come after him in such a public place as a school. If he didn't keep moving, he'd continue to present a good target. Ryo glanced at Jenrya as he picked up his jacket from where it had fallen during the scuffle, his face neutral and calm. "Why'd you come back?"</p><p>"I had more questions," Jenrya answered, exchanging looks with Gargomon. "And when I met up with Terriermon, I had to turn around. You were lucky we came back."</p><p>"Sooner or later they'll send more than that."</p><p>Jenrya blinked as Ryo pushed past him. "Who?"</p><p>"Them. From the Digital World." Ryo continued toward the stairs leading to the ground level, his voice no longer amused. "They tagged me as a threat. They might've failed this time. Or maybe the next few tries they'll keep messing up. But eventually they're going to finish me off. They're like jackals – they'll wait until I'm not paying attention or I screw up and then go for the kill."</p><p>Jenrya fell into step, a smaller Rookie resting on his shoulders. Gargomon had reverted to his lower form as Ryo was talking, Terriermon now listening in on this conversation between the two humans with cocked ears. You couldn't run away forever and it looked like staying off the radar wasn't gonna work anymore.</p><p>He had no choice then. Not when time suddenly became even more of an issue.</p><p>Ryo opened the door, pausing as he turned Jenrya. "Maybe you don't understand what I'm talking about. They're going to be after me like the others. Let's be realistic. You're <em>not </em>going to be there every time I need help. I'd say my chances are pretty low. If I were you, I wouldn't bother getting worked up all over this."</p><p>"But you almost got killed!" Jenrya protested. It was weird how calm Ryo was. It was like he'd been expecting this for a long time.</p><p>"This time. I'm still alive. Who knows? Maybe next time will be different." Ryo began going down the stairs, hands in his pockets as he scowled. "I said I'd think about your offer earlier. I know you don't like me – "</p><p>Jenrya opened his mouth to say his piece.</p><p>" – but I don't think it matters at this point. I'll do what I can, but it's not much." There was that cynical half-smile again, as if Ryo was mocking himself. "But that's assuming I don't eat the big one any time soon." It was almost ironic, that he was getting targeted for something he hadn't yet decided on. No matter how careful he could be, how many attempts he might live through, there would be that one careless mistake, that one slip-up. Game over. Thinking about it, it was actually kinda pathetic, because this <em>really</em> wasn't how he'd planned to live his life.</p><p>Everything had gone downhill that one dusty day in the Digital World. When Ryo first received those scars, when he'd lost his partner...</p><p>A mental sigh. Tamayo was going to be sad. She was such a sad woman to begin with: so shy and meek and introverted she didn't get along well with others because she had zero social skills. <em>What's she going to do without me?</em> Ryo wondered. If he didn't keep reminding her to eat every time she forgot, or to rest when it was necessary, how would she get anywhere? Tamayo would be even more sad if he vanished one day. And, Ryo suddenly noticed, it bothered him to consider this, that it would because of <em>him</em> she would be sad. She shouldn't have to be sad because of him.</p><p>But maybe it would be better to keep her out of this. This was his problem. Only the necessary people should get involved.</p><p>
  <em> Better me than her…</em>
</p><p><strong>To be continued...</strong><br/>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Golem, Golem</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Strange lights appear in the sky, Digimon-who-aren't. Ryo gets involved with Jenrya about trying to sort through the mess and fills him a bit more about Digimon-human bonds. Impmon gets an offer he can't refuse.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(</strong>
  <strong>Golem, Golem)</strong>
</p><p>Chitose Saiki was drunk.</p><p>It wasn't fun, being drunk this late at night. Her lips felt tingly. For one thing, she wasn't quite walking straight and no one was able to drive her home. They all lived in the opposite directions. And besides, Izumi told her, she could use the exercise. Walk it off and stuff. Chitose's legs wobbled and she doubted she'd find her way home. It would be humiliating for her if one of the koban officers were patrolling the area, because she'd definitely need help getting home. Of course they'd be very polite and helpful. But it would still be embarrassing.</p><p>The woman staggered across the street. She didn't trust her feet at all, the powerful dry winds pushing at her. Chitose was forced to bend against it, shoulders hunched.</p><p>Leaning on the railing heavily, Chitose went on her way, her eyes glancing blearily at the dark brushes on the other side of the path. Why had she gotten so wasted in the first place? She wasn't even from around here, but she'd been visiting a couple of friends, one of who let her stay at his place until she had to go back to Ueno. It must've been something important. Something about a break-up…? Or maybe she'd just gotten fired? Maybe even both?</p><p>In fact, she was more than just drunk. Closer to being hammered.</p><p>Chitose neared the bubbling fountain in the middle of the small park. Resting on the railing, she paused for breath, her gaze sweeping the area as she brushed her hair from her face. And then did a double take, suddenly noticing something – where <em>was</em> that light coming from? That sickly blue glow? It was simply <em>there</em>, casting the fountain in its pale light. It wasn't natural.</p><p>In fact…despite the fact everything was still fuzzy, some instinct begged her to turn around and leave .</p><p>But she didn't listen to it. Chitose was close to getting sick as she clapped a hand to her mouth, shutting her eyes and wishing the nausea would go away. Her other hand tightening on the rail, she sat back on her knees, the office lady resting her forehead against the cool metal. She hoped she wouldn't get sick. Not out here.</p><p>Swallowing her nausea, Chitose glanced over her shoulder. And froze, blinking in astonishment as she noticed the unexpected visitor.</p><p><em>What </em>is<em> that?</em></p><p>A small animal peeped at her from around the fountain. It wasn't very big, but whatever it was, it was strange looking. It looked like a bizarre mix between a small dog and a cloud. It looked like she was starting to see things now, because half of the animal's body ended in a swirling tail of blue, opaque gas. Well, it was probably just a lost puppy and the rest was all those beers talking. She didn't know what a Tapirmon looked like. Chitose turned around as the pitiful little thing half-crawled, half-floated toward her. <em>Poor thing! </em>It looked so skeletal, like it hadn't been eating in a while; she could clearly see the outlines of its ribs through the lightly furred hide. It looked like it was going to keel over any second.</p><p>"You poor thing," Chitose breathed. It stumbled over to her, the ghostly eyes fixed on the kneeling woman. "Who's your owner, boy?"</p><p>The weird puppy didn't make any noises as it approached Chitose. She held out one hand to it as it came closer. The creature dragged itself toward her, foot by foot. "I can't believe someone would actually abandon you. Poor thing," she cooed as it stopped only a foot away, the plated nose sniffing at her outstretched fingers. A noiseless snuffle. Its breath was cool, like a winter gust.</p><p>It pounced at her.</p><p>With a startled screech, Chitose fell backward…and backed right into the railing. Before she could scramble away from her attacker, the Tapirmon was on her, still silent. It dove head first into her – like a ghost, it went right through. Chitose stiffened as the tail of the cloud vanished into her chest. <em>Something </em>was being pulled from her, she was suffocating as numbness spread from her chest all over the rest of her body.</p><p>Eventually the struggles ceased.</p><p>The Tapirmon Golem squirmed free from the human female as it slumped lifelessly against the metal bars. Chitose's staring eyes had been bleached white, colorless as the Golem pulled first its long snout and then the rest of its body out from the host. The orders had been clear and the dead face of the Rookie turned toward the direction of the Juggernaut, its new brown eyes emotionless. The orders were simple: "overtake", "host", and "pool". That had been all that the brainless creature was able to understand, but it followed those orders with a singe-minded zeal. A glow shone throughout the unstable hide of Golem as it took to the air, as if something inside it was lighting it from within.</p><p>Several people claimed they saw lights in the sky flying that night.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Impmon shivered, rubbing his gloved paws furiously against each other in an attempt to warm up. Stamping his feet didn't work. At least it gave him something to do. Standing behind the billboard, the fierce winds couldn't reach him, but it was still cold.</p><p>It hadn't been a good week. Last night was one of <em>the</em> weirdest experiences in the history of ever. <em>Sheesh, this place is turning upside down!</em> He didn't have any idea why and he didn't want to stick around to find out. Maybe he should leave Tokyo. There was no point in staying. He didn't even know why he was still lurking about here. If he'd been smart, he would've left a long time ago<em>.</em></p><p>The wind was roaring by, whistling angrily as it lashed through the skyscrapers. The humans below were still scrambling after last night and he didn't want to deal with them right now. 'Sides, who knew if Fox Face was still looking for him? He didn't feel like dealing with those kids right now, those almost pitying looks that their Digimon gave him. Gross!</p><p>He winced. A flash of green eyes, a glint from a huge blade. Pigtails. And then a blank.</p><p>It wasn't hard to work himself up into a good sulk. Impmon was already feeling sorry for himself, and it had been awhile since he saw Calumon. He didn't want to admit it, but…he was actually kinda lonely, sitting here by himself, shivering in the wind. He didn't immediately notice when he wasn't alone. The Rookie started when a relatively familiar voice snuck up on him.</p><p>"Miserable day, isn't it?"</p><p>Impmon jerked, casting about for the source of the voice. Where in the…?</p><p>The voice continued speaking, all casual. "But of course a little wind never hurt anyone."</p><p>Impmon stared in open surprise as a young boy came into view, walking easily along the railing surrounding the roof's perimeter. <em>Hey…I </em>know<em> this guy</em>. Okay, so the name wasn't coming to him, but Impmon definitely recognized this particular human. And those stupid yellow goggles, yeah he remembered those too. The human was one of those "Tamers". The short one with Guilmon. What was his name? Started with a T... <em>Takato</em>. Takato strolled toward him at a leisurely pace. Impmon was instantly on his guard; something was weird here…</p><p>Takato hopped down from his perch, his too-bright blue eyes on Impmon. It was unnerving how the kid was clearly measuring him up.</p><p>"You've been hard to find, you know."</p><p>Impmon frowned. From his limited experience, this kid never talked like that. He was moving strangely too, stiffly. Like he wasn't used to his limbs. The expression didn't belong to the Tamer. And, to top it off, there was something different about his face: the virus-type couldn't place a paw on it, but something was out of place. Takato looped his arms around the struts as he stared at Impmon. "Spent several days looking for you. And now here you are."</p><p>"What's yer deal?" Impmon demanded. "How'd you even get up here?"</p><p>The human made a mirthless sound. "Obviously I'm not human. Must I spell it out?"</p><p>"Obviously. Pardon me if I ain't surprised." Huh. Impmon clearly remembered the Tamer vanishing right into thin air that night at Tokyo Tower, with the Guilmon that wasn't Guilmon. Even at the distance he'd been, he somehow sensed a difference. Takato disappeared. What he knew about the kid pinned him as a big old softy, so yeah, then he definitely wasn't dealing with the same human. Someone stole Takato's face.</p><p>Probably a Digimon, then, 'cause humans couldn't pass themselves off like that. A few Digimon out there could do the whole smoke and mirrors thing, steal faces and memories and all that jazz. Creepy.</p><p>The boy put on a smile. That's how Impmon saw it - he plastered it on like it didn't belong. "Are you going to waste my time with meaningless banter?"</p><p>Indignation surged, but Impmon managed to force it back down before he did (or said) something stupid. Better to be on his best behavior right now. His hackles raised instinctively and the Rookie swallowed down the impulsive retort, a grimace revealing his small fangs.</p><p>"Good," Takato took his silence as consent. "I'll dispense with the pretense of pleasantries. Orders are orders, after all. It's nothing personal."</p><p>Orders? From who?</p><p>"My Mistress notes your presence," said Takato. "I bear a proposal. It would be in your best interests to hear me out."</p><p>Impmon was suspicious. It was weird enough here was a Digimon actually trying to contact him now. Why would they suddenly have an interest in him? After all, they'd left him stranded out here, with all these <em>humans</em>! If they knew about him, then why hadn't he been able to go home? Although he was naturally suspicious, he was willing to listen to whatever this Digimon/thing had to say. But that didn't mean he had to sign on the dotted line either.<em> I come first. I ain't servin' no cause I don't benefit from.</em></p><p>"I'm listenin'," Impmon grunted, crossing his arms over his chest.</p><p>"Perhaps you noticed last night," Takato drawled. "It has all been planned, Impmon. You could play a role in this, if you so desired. These humans are weak. We will overtake them, these foolish creatures. We will rule over them. All of us, not just the elite. Not just the Ultimates. Not just the Megas. All of us. Would you not want to be involved in such a grand endeavor?"</p><p>"And what are you proposin' I do?"</p><p>"You could take up arms with us. You must have potential, Impmon, to draw the eye of my Mistress. She knows of your past transgressions, but she is willing to offer you a chance to redeem yourself. This is a rare opportunity she gives you."</p><p>Impmon blinked. "What d'ya mean, 'past transgressions'?"</p><p>"You don't remember?"</p><p>"If you could fill me in, I might," the Rookie retorted.</p><p>"You came into contact with two humans several years ago," said Takato, turning his hand over as if he was disgusted being attached to the thing. "Perhaps it is for the better you don't remember the details. The rift between our world and this one has been weakening and it is only a matter of time. Will you fight alongside us?" A sly blue-eyed glance. "We can see to it you'll digivolve. Assist us against the humans and everything you desire will be yours. You only have to ask and it will be done."</p><p>Tempting. He wasn't sure what this Digimon meant by the whole thing about past transgressions though. It always bothered him there seemed to be gaps in his memory and he'd toyed with the idea of digivolution more than once. What if he digivolved? Would that make everything go back the way it was? Would he remember? From the sounds of it, the Digital World had good chances of coming out the victor once the two planes clashed. <em>Don't really wanna be neutral when </em>that<em> happens. </em>The Rookie scratched his head, mulling this over. You didn't want to be pinned between the two. Of course he wanted to be on the winning side.</p><p>Impmon got to his clawed feet, brushing his fur off.</p><p>"I'll think about it."</p><p>An icy smile. Takato's voice was stained with the threat, the boy's hand idly sparking with strands of dark energy.</p><p>"Don't dwell on it too long, Impmon. I would hate to have to hunt you down personally."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ryo Akiyama was still alive.</p><p>
  <em> Yes, we know.</em>
</p><p>The Juggernaut must continue its efforts. Both systems agreed. The Creator told them Ryo Akiyama was a threat to the plans of the Council she was part of. They also agreed this was true – but the Juggernaut also considered the fact Ryo could be a threat to itself as well. If he came into contact with the "obstructions" – the children with Digimon – and told all he knew, the knowledge could somehow lead them here. The dominant system disagreed with this suggestion: the calculated probability was far too low to concern itself with. However, it would keep this scenario in mind. After all, it couldn't afford to lose its "heart", so steps would be taken to reduce that risk.</p><p>
  <em>We'll try again?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Yes. Again. And again. Until he is terminated.</strong>
</p><p><em>Then why not </em>now<em>? </em>Humans were usually still asleep now. There was experience in that area.</p><p>Because the human would be ready. The supercomputer would be as efficient as possible and it would serve no purpose to needlessly expend energy. It would wait until the target's guard was down and then try again. It hadn't known about the self-defense systems built into the D-Arcs. It <em>hurt </em>when the extensions received those shocks. It hadn't hurt the dominant system – no, it was funneled past it, to the lesser of the two. The Juggernaut hadn't felt the pain, but the other did.</p><p>Whatever remained of Takato Matsuda was still aching from the encounter with Ryo Akiyama.</p><p>Because of the companion system, the Juggernaut was capable of feeling pain. But it was an effective arrangement, the Juggernaut only vulnerable if the "heart" was. But if the extensions – or the machine itself – were under attack, any physical sensations would be passed onto the lesser, human awareness. This arrangement eliminated any distractions for the dominant side. Effective, for its center was deep inside itself. Protecting itself would not be an issue. However, there were other things that needed to be attended to.</p><p>Both systems focused their attention on Tokyo's sprawl. Visuals narrowed down to a few cameras in the southern area of Shinjuku. Lurking along the edges of the Yuggoth program, the supercomputer noted the Golem didn't cause the watchdog programs to spike, not like Digimon did. And so it slid past. The Juggernaut turned one of its many eyes as the Golem – in the form of a Tapirmon – went for the closest host. The Golem was about to arrive, but so was the Creator, according to the lobby's cameras.</p><p>Of course the Creator wasn't really a woman. Or even a human, for that matter. It was just the form she took on. She was the Deceiver precisely because of that ability: a fickle Digimon, she only bestowed the gift of shape-changing on her closest cohorts. And even then they would never have her powers, not to her extent. She was one of a kind in that aspect, the strongest available. And now she was here again.</p><p>She did what she had to. So should they.</p><p>The Juggernaut was aware of what was unfolding in the Real World. It knew about the operatives that had been chosen by the Council. It long ago categorized the positions for future reference. The operatives were appointed in a Line, each one's work blending into the other to be as effective as possible. The Founder prepared the way for his successors, prepared for the invasion. He laid the groundwork the Deceiver would work on. And the Deceiver would keep the humans unaware until it was too late. By then the Shield would be in place and deception would no longer be needed. Both systems approved of this way of working: it was the operation of a machine, each part doing their respective work and helping the others. Very efficient.</p><p>
  <em>The humans don't stand a chance, Jenrya.</em>
</p><p><strong> No, they do not. Not when the Shield arrives.</strong> The humans would be trapped in Tokyo, this newest operative keeping them locked within the city's boundaries, as well as keep out any outside interference. <strong>Humans never stood a chance</strong>, the dominant side said. <strong>They are disorganized. <em>You</em>, however, are fortunate.</strong></p><p>That was true. The lesser part of the supercomputer understood this. It understood whatever it was told.</p><p>It trusted the Juggernaut without question.</p><p>It already came to the Juggernaut's attention that Takato Matsuda's companions – his "friends" – had begun looking for him. And that one of them had already spoken with the target Ryo Akiyama. A potential problem. Especially since there were things, such as additional properties of the D-Arc, that he could tell them. The shocks the Digivice sent went right to the Juggernaut and a powerful enough one could actually stun it: it wouldn't be able to access the electronics in the immediate area until it got its bearings back. Which could be several minutes to half an hour, depending on how far away it was. The closer they were, the faster the recovery rate.</p><p>The "heart" was still concerned about the Juggernaut. Was it hurt?</p><p>
  <strong>No. Of course not.</strong>
</p><p>A surge of something resembling relief.</p><p>The Juggernaut began organizing the information that was filtering through with expert ease. In a way, it was like looking down at its own body. Part of the Juggernaut once had a faint memory of walking on two legs, of seeing things with only his two eyes. But that was irrelevant now. Combined, the Juggernaut and the companion system were perfect. The power of the companion system's Will and the Juggernaut's own unwavering focus were unstoppable.</p><p>The Creator was in the elevator now. And the Golem – a small glimmer of light like a will o' wisp – approached the building. It simply went through the walls, oblivious to everything, drawn toward the pool next to the Juggernaut's chambers. A quick rotation of CCTV cameras. A majority of the population was sleeping in the Shinjuku area and none of the extensions were picking up any activities that required closer inspection.</p><p>Kincaid Donovan arrived. The Juggernaut turned on all the lights in the smaller room, flooding it with a harsh yellow glow as the Deceiver began to resume her shape. Both sides, dominant and submissive, were curious about this "experiment" of hers.</p><p>
  <em> …what will it be like?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> It will be like the deletion of a Digimon. But we will be uploading the "data" it carries.</strong>
</p><p>Made some sense. But then again, everything Jenrya said made sense.</p><p>The various monitors around the still pool began to hum to life as Kincaid approached. The lens zoomed in. She was saying something, her mouth moving. There was the briefest of delays as the Juggernaut translated the vibrations in the air to binary code.</p><p>" – failure. Why is Ryo Akiyama still alive?"</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya, do we really need to kill…?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> If you want to stay the way you are, yes.</strong>
</p><p>That quelled any other "suggestions" from the submissive system.</p><p>Text began scrolling across the nearest computer screen as the Juggernaut explained the delay in its task. Another human 0ame to the target's aide. It appeared the D-Arcs these children carried differed from the original Digivices. These were not the same as those the first humans carried. They were stronger.</p><p>"Hmm…is that so?"</p><p>
  <strong>Yes.</strong>
</p><p>Kincaid scratched the back of her head, running too-long fingers through her thick purple hair. "They must've evolved somehow. No one knows a lot about those things to begin with," She paused, her mouth making an expression of veiled disgust as the room brightened at the new arrival: the Tapirmon Golem was waiting stupidly at the pool's edge, having just floated down from the ceiling. Kincaid disdainfully ignored the creature. "Looks like we're starting."</p><p>She seated herself at the console nearest the pool as the Juggernaut turned its "eyes" on the Golem. It was still hovering, staring straight ahead. Mindless. Waiting for purpose.</p><p>"Into the water," the Creator ordered it coldly. She didn't even bother to look at the Tapirmon to see if it complied. The glowing creature obediently dove into pool, sinking underneath the surface. Her fingertips flying expertly, Kincaid began setting up the experiment's perimeters. Both sides of the Juggernaut set to work getting the pool ready for deletion. A surge of power and the waters suddenly rippled under its manipulations, lit from within by a moss-green glow. The Golem was a soft blob of gold shimmering in the depths of the pool.</p><p>"Delete it. Remember, I'm monitoring this, so keep it neat."</p><p>
  <strong>Very well.</strong>
</p><p>Around the pool, a ring of red markers lit up as the Juggernaut fed more power to the "pool". The green glow increased as the supercomputer began deleting the Golem and the burden it carried, the life of a drunk. The Tapirmon slowly began to dissolve into data particles. Light leaked out, oozing into the water as more and more of the Golem broke apart.</p><p>And then the Juggernaut began to upload the energy of both the Tapirmon Golem and the host.</p><p>It was indescribable.</p><p>There were memories. A woman's life collapsed into brief glimpses of intense emotions, passions that varied between sadness, to pleasure, to anger and happiness. Inside its metal casing, the Juggernaut closed his eyes, drawing in a quivering breath as all of these sensations passed over him. Both sides of the supercomputer were fascinated with these feelings – it was a human they deleted, not a Golem. The Golem had only carried the aura of the unfortunate woman named Chitose Saiki. A good deal of this human was physical pleasure and recent tensions. They were so <em>human</em>, these emotions.</p><p>So human.</p><p>
  <em> What I once was?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>What we were once does not hold any relevance anymore.</strong>
</p><p>Oh, but this was all so familiar…</p><p>
  <strong> But these are the only glimpses we will have of these humans. Nothing more.</strong>
</p><p>Intoxicating. This was human <em>Will</em>, exposed for what it really was.</p><p>It was beautiful, so tempting in diminishing glow. That light…</p><p>It was human.</p><p>
  <strong> Upload is 50% complete.</strong>
</p><p>It was a reminder. For a moment, Takato Matsuda listened. For a brief moment, he wasn't broken. For a moment, Takato was only a kid again, not Jenrya's "heart". He was aware of himself, locked into the throne-like personality matrix. Unmoving.</p><p>The light had been so weak…and his own was the same.</p><p>It was suddenly over: Takato Matsuda faded back into the general consciousness of the Juggernaut.</p><p>
  <strong> Upload complete.</strong>
</p><p>Kincaid whistled her approval as she leaned over the railing of the pool's walkway. There was no sign of the Tapirmon Golem. The Juggernaut gave a pleased hum from the machinery surrounding the calm waters. Both systems could feel the sheer power thrumming throughout it, as if there was actually <em>life </em>animating its coils, and not just Will and electricity.</p><p>The Creator was grinning as she scanned the results.</p><p>"Cool! No hitches whatsoever." A sudden thought and Kincaid twirled a lock of hair between her fingers. "We can harvest more energy for you this way and get rid of some of those Golems. They're such a nuisance sometimes. But we can kill two birds with one stone if we use this method. What do you think?"</p><p>
  <strong>True. The Golems were weak, so it was natural for the stronger to take advantage of them. At least they were being put to a use.</strong>
</p><p>Kincaid laughed at this comment. "Right? Looks like I'll be calling in more of the pests for this." She planted her hands on her hips, raising an eyebrow at the computer screen. "How do you feel about this?"</p><p>The Juggernaut would look forward to it.</p><p>More vibrations in the air translated to binary. "The Golems that come here will go into the pool. When that happens, delete them. The more you delete, the closer we are to our goal." The Deceiver gave a chuckle as she strolled toward the door. "Don't enjoy yourself too much. I want you to get rid of those children while you're uploading. And as for that Digimon of yours…make sure he doesn't wander out into public. Make him useful."</p><p>The Juggernaut would see to it. Humans were such short-lived things: if a few were gone, no one would miss them. As for the Digimon in question – a little persuasion would easily keep the creature in line.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Guilmon felt sick. It wasn't the warm sick he felt when he ate too much. It wasn't full-sick. It wasn't that feeling he got when he stayed out in the cold either. This was a different sick.</p><p>
  <em>Takato, I feel bad…</em>
</p><p>He huddled against the curved wall of the tunnel, his amber eyes half-lidded as he shivered. Didn't feel good. But Takato would make it go away. Takato had called to him when everything turned weird. Takato called for <em>him </em>only.</p><p>His human needed him.</p><p>A twinge of pain from his side caused Guilmon to sink to his haunches, tongue lolling out in a pant. Oh, he hurt! Takato had been hurt by someone (or something) and now he felt it too. His skin was all prickly and he ached with pain. His ragged breaths came in whistling wheezes. <em>Takato? </em>Where was Takato? He'd heard his Tamer's voice in his head, calling for him that night. And then again when he was with Terriermon. But Takato sounded different then, lifeless. He hadn't been screaming for help then, hadn't been crying.</p><p>But Guilmon listened anyway.</p><p>"Takato…I'm here…" Guilmon rubbed his head against the smooth surface of the wall, closing his eyes as if he could will away the shared pain. Takato said to wait <em>here</em>. But he hurt now. Takato was hurting too. Another brush against the wall, harder this time. "Where did you go?" Guilmon was babbling now – he didn't know why – but speaking aloud distracted him from the prickly sensation. "Takato?"</p><p>What if Takato left? Had he abandoned him?</p><p>Guilmon's throat caught. What if his Tamer grew sick of him? The Rookie hadn't thought of that. What if Takato called him here only to leave him? It was such a cruel thing to do. <em>Takato's not mean! </em>Takato hadn't a mean bone in his body. Takato would talk to him again, Guilmon decided with certainty. Takato would tell him why he vanished, why Jenrya told those lies to him. Takato would tell him what was going on. Guilmon let out a low, strained growl, banging his scaly shoulder into the wall.</p><p>"Takato!"</p><p>The cry echoed forlornly off the walls as Guilmon tilted his winged head, listening. No answer. Takato wasn't here yet. The shrunken wings drooped. He wanted to be hugged and comforted, but there was no one here. And the buzzing in his head wasn't going away either. It was maddening, distracting. Buzzing like a hive of bees in his brain. An irritated shake of his wedge-shaped head. The bees weren't going away, no matter how much he ground his skull against the wall.</p><p>
  <em> "Guilmon?"</em>
</p><p><em>Takato! </em>Guilmon stopped in mid-rub against the wall, his eyes flaring open. Takato was here! Like he'd promised! But there was only confusion as the Rookie glanced about the tunnel. His Tamer was nowhere to be seen. He could hear his friend, but that was it. There was no distinctive scent, just the familiar voice. "Takato?"</p><p>
  <em>"Yes."</em>
</p><p>Guilmon surged forward eagerly. "Oh, I've missed you, where'd you go?" In his relief, he didn't notice he was talking to the air, that the voice of his Tamer was thick in the nest of buzzing bees.</p><p>
  <em> "I had to go somewhere, Guilmon. But I told you I'd come back."</em>
</p><p>"Are you okay?" Guilmon asked, worried.</p><p>
  <em>"…Someone hurt me, but I'm okay."</em>
</p><p>Guilmon felt a threatening snarl rumble through his chest as he strained to find the location of the boy's voice. Who hurt his Tamer? His human? His pupils shrunk down to dangerous black slits that were almost lost in the golden irises.</p><p>
  <em> "It doesn't matter. I'll tell you later."</em>
</p><p>Guilmon shook his head rebelliously. Someone hurt Takato, therefore he had to do something about it. But eventually Guilmon quieted down, his grumbles of anger falling gradually into silence as the boy waited patiently for him to finish his spitting growls. Now that Takato was back, his hive of bees had only gotten stronger. But his Tamer's voice was soothing and Guilmon eased back onto his hind legs, resting his snout on the cold floor of concrete.</p><p>
  <em>"I'm glad I can talk to you again."</em>
</p><p>"Me too. It's been so long," Guilmon mumbled.</p><p>
  <em> "I want you to stay here, okay? </em>
  <em>It's not safe out there. They're looking for me."</em>
</p><p>Guilmon blinked. Who was?</p><p>
  <em>"My friends. They can't find me. I don't want to be found."</em>
</p><p>Well, that was weird. After all, Jenrya and Ruki were Takato's friends, weren't they? And Terriermon and Renamon…everyone was worried about Takato. Why didn't he want to be found? They were only trying to help, right? This was all very confusing. "But…"</p><p><em> "If they find me, I'll be hurt."</em> Takato's voice said tonelessly. <em>"I can trust you, can't I?"</em></p><p>Guilmon's jaws snapped shut, wounded. Of course Takato could trust him! They were best friends, weren't they?</p><p>…Weren't they?</p><p>There was only silence from Takato's end.</p><p>"You can trust me," Guilmon whimpered. Takato was mad at him, he could tell. Did he say something wrong? The Rookie hastily tried to fix whatever mistake he'd made. "I don't want you to get hurt."</p><p><em>"Then you have to stay here. If they see you again, I'll get hurt. Please listen to me, this is serious." </em>Takato's voice broke expertly, imitating the first signs of fear.<em> "I-I'm scared, Guilmon. You can help me. Please," </em>he repeated with the beginnings of desperation. <em>"I…I need you."</em></p><p>Guilmon's eyes brimmed with tears now. The very idea that Takato was in pain, was frightened somewhere made his snout all runny. And there was guilt, too. Why hadn't Guilmon gone looking with the others? Why hadn't he known where Takato vanished off to? They were partners, after all. He should <em>know</em> these things…he'd thought that they had a…well, <em>something </em>between them. Guilmon wasn't quite sure what exactly. The buzzing in his head grew even louder, drowning out even his own voice. It was only that and Takato he could hear now as he nodded tearfully.</p><p>
  <em> "Then you'll help protect me?"</em>
</p><p>Guilmon knew he was saying he would, but he couldn't even hear himself now. Just the deafening buzz and the lulling voice of his Tamer.</p><p>
  <em> "You're bound to me, Guilmon. Protect me. You're the only one who can. If you don't, I'll get hurt again…and so will you."</em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Oh my."</p><p>Ruki glanced up from her backpack at her grandmother's soft exclamation. The elderly woman slowly sank down into a chair, her eyes focused now on the TV.</p><p>"Ruki, come here for a minute."</p><p>Grudgingly curious, Ruki got to her feet at the sound of her grandmother's voice.<em> Now what? More oatmeal? </em>She wondered ruefully. Although she didn't get along with her mother, she was usually nicer to the older woman. After all, her grandmother was little more than a bystander and she always seemed to see the good in people…Ruki couldn't despise her, it just wasn't possible.</p><p>Her grandmother turned up the volume.</p><p>"…found dead this morning," the newscaster was saying. He exchanged glances with the woman sitting next to him. "According to the officials, there is no known cause of death. Ms. Saiki's body was found at six this morning in the newly developed Takamori Fountain Park. It's suspected she likely died of natural causes, but this hasn't been confirmed."</p><p>"My condolences," the other newscaster remarked, her lips pursing as she shook her brown curls. "I don't want to sound harsh, but I <em>do </em>hope it was natural and not something hu –"</p><p><em>Click</em>.</p><p>Ruki raised an eyebrow as her grandmother got to her feet. The older woman glanced over her shoulder, her frown worried. Ruki went back to getting ready to leave: she wasn't really sure how she was supposed to act, finding out a complete stranger just up and died. When you didn't know someone, were you supposed to cry about it? Whatever happened to them didn't have an immediate effect on you. In went her pens, dumped into the backpack.</p><p>Ruki shouldered her backpack, turning around. Her grandmother was watching her. Ruki looked away, a little uncomfortable at the scrutiny. <em>Why </em>is<em> she looking at me like that? </em>Ruki finally turned around, breaking the awkward silence.</p><p>"I'm going."</p><p>A weary sigh.</p><p>"Be careful, Ruki."</p><p><em>How much does she know? </em>Ruki wondered as she closed the gate behind her. It was hard to say. Sometimes she got the impression her grandmother knew everything she was involved in. Everything; Renamon, the wild Digimon. It was dangerous, what she got herself mixed up in. She didn't want her family to get involved. It was her business, hers to deal with. No one else's.</p><p>Frowning to herself, Ruki continued down the empty road. Renamon was probably watching her right now, hidden as usual. A snort.<em> Grandmother has nothing to worry about. </em>Ruki was a lot safer than most people. "Most" people didn't have their own Digimon, for starters. And although she rarely admitted it to herself – or to her partner – Renamon was good at what she did. The best, in fact. She couldn't ask for a better guardian. There was an unspoken trust between the two. It was assumed that each would look after the other.</p><p>She turned down a side alley when Renamon appeared: she was suddenly sitting on a ledge a few feet overhead, her bushy tail curling at her side as she looked down at the approaching human. There wasn't much sunlight between the apartment buildings and the darkness only seemed to make the Renamon's silky fur become even brighter.</p><p>Ruki had never actually stepped back and <em>looked </em>at her "partner". She was actually very pretty, now that she thought about it.</p><p>"Any luck?"</p><p>"Regrettably, no," Renamon got to her hind feet. "No Takato look-alikes. No Impmon either."</p><p>Ruki sighed. "We're getting nowhere," she muttered. "There's too much ground to cover."</p><p>Renamon joined her, hopping off the ledge. The Digimon straightened, glancing down at her Tamer. What she said was all too true. There was simply too much area. And there was only so much Renamon could cover alone. Renamon fell into step with Ruki, who continued down the narrow alley. The wind that had grown stronger overnight was kicking up loose bits of debris, discarded newspapers and posters whirling dust-devils around their feet.</p><p>The Tamer simply ploughed through them. "I think we should try talking to this Ryo kid Jenrya was talking about. It sounds like he knows more about what's going on than we do."</p><p>"He might be able to help us," Renamon agreed. "Although I myself am curious just how he came by whatever knowledge he has."</p><p>"I'd like to find out too," Ruki said, hefting her backpack to a different shoulder. Next to her, Renamon was silent, her tail moving lazily behind her as she walked. Ruki was feeling a bit better since the attack, although it looked like her partner wasn't going to be as forgiving about it: she was still tense with suppressed fury that only showed in the smallest of gestures. "Maybe it's just me, but I've got a weird feeling about this whole thing…"</p><p>Renamon lowered her snout, her inhuman eyes averted.</p><p>"Whatever it is, it's already in motion."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Another half-day.</p><p>Jenrya sighed. These days it started to seem like it was pointless to even bother coming to school, but he did anyway. Not because they were getting much learning done, but because it was the only way he knew how to keep in contact with Ryo. The other boy seemed to come and go whenever he felt like it. But Ryo seemed to show up for his classes and this way Jenrya could keep an eye on him. Jenrya was genuinely worried…or at least he told himself that he was. He refused to consider the idea that maybe (just maybe) the only reason he felt anything in the first place was because of what Ryo <em>knew</em>.</p><p>It was true. Even if he told himself otherwise.</p><p>He'd managed to convince Ryo to wait for him after school, that he, (as Jenrya had half-jokingly put it), would play his "faithful bodyguard". Ryo only rolled his eyes, but he'd also taken the Tamer up on his offer. For the most part, Ryo still continued with his "I'm the coolest kid around" act in the presence of his classmates, but he was mostly just cool when left to his own devices. Like now, walking side by side. After a point, Jenrya gave up to have a conversation. They went in uncomfortable silence toward Guilmon's former den, where Terriermon waited. It was only when they'd begun to mount the stairs that Ryo spoke up.</p><p>"How many other people have you told about Digimon?"</p><p>Jenrya glanced at Ryo – the other boy had stopped in his tracks and was now facing him with another one of his unreadable expressions, as if keeping his face blank would prepare him for anything coming next.</p><p>"Well, I haven't told anyone: I'm not sure about Ruki. But I know Takato has at least told one other person."</p><p>"Who?"</p><p>"I don't really know her that well…"</p><p>Ryo was quiet for a moment, black eyes withdrawn in thought. He was still frozen in mid-step on the stairs, one foot on the step above the others as he spoke up, "It's that girl, the one with the green bow in her hair." There was only cool certainty in his voice. "The team leader."</p><p>It took a moment for Jenrya to figure out who Ryo was talking about. He stared – how could Ryo know? He'd barely spoken to Juri, and from his impression, Ryo hadn't made any contact with Takato.</p><p>"Juri Katou. Takato's friend."</p><p>Ryo didn't seem to notice he'd spoken. Without warning, he was suddenly moving again, turning and heading up the winding concrete stairs. Jenrya followed the other boy, bewildered. <em>What was that all about?</em> His gray eyes fixed on Ryo's back. How could Ryo have known that Takato told Juri? <em>There's just no way…he couldn't have talked to Takato. </em>And he doubted Juri told him. The two boys winded their way through the sun-splashed stairwell, climbing higher through the brush. The wind was still strong, shaking the trees overhead furiously. Branches creaked ominously. Ducking his head, Jenrya followed Ryo.</p><p>Terriermon waited for them at the open gates, taking refuge from the blistering wind.</p><p>Ryo was the first to speak up. "About this Juri. What's she like?"</p><p>"She's nice, I guess. Haven't really talked outside of class."</p><p>"Did Takato tell you what he told her?"</p><p>Jenrya frowned as Terriermon crawled up to his normal perch on his shoulder. "He said he showed her Guilmon. I think she probably already knows about Terriermon and Renamon. In fact, I think Calumon has been staying with her for the past week."</p><p>"So she's with a Digimon. Is this one her partner?"</p><p>"No, at least I don't think so. I don't think she's a Tamer." Jenrya said. At least this he was sure of. Calumon didn't seem to be the partner type – actually, thinking about it, he wasn't sure just what kind of Digimon Calumon was. <em>A weird one, that's for sure. </em>Far as he knew, Calumon didn't have any attacks to speak of, no special powers besides being his cute self. As for Juri – she didn't seem to be the type to have a Digimon. <em>Does she even have an interest in them? </em>It was true no one knew what qualified someone to become a Tamer; Ruki thought it was a matter of strength, both mental and physical. Takato thought that it was a matter of "will". Jenrya himself wasn't sure what to think. It just...happened.</p><p>"She can't stay in Tokyo." Ryo's eyes rose up to meet Jenrya's. "Convince her leave on that vacation of hers earlier."</p><p>Terriermon interrupted, his bead-eyes clearly confused as he raised a paw. "Excuse me, what's going on?"</p><p>"I'd like to know myself. What does Juri have to do with what's been going on?"</p><p>Ryo pursed his lips.</p><p>"She'll get dragged into this. If she's out of Tokyo, she'll be safer."</p><p>Jenrya sighed. "Okay. I'll talk to her and see if she can convince her family to leave early."</p><p>"Now that you guys finished up with that, maybe we can get talking about what's <em>really </em>important." Terriermon poked Jenrya in the side of the head with a claw, eliciting a sound of protest from his Tamer. "I don't know if Jenrya told you, but Guilmon disappeared yesterday."</p><p>"Yeah, Jenrya filled me in."</p><p>"He was acting really weird when I was with him. Like he was distracted or something." Terriermon was talking to Jenrya now; it was easier to talk to his Tamer than this stranger he brought with him. "I swear, I left him for a few minutes and he vanished on me."</p><p>Jenrya said nothing, glancing at Ryo expectantly. "Distracted?"</p><p>"Like he wasn't listening to me. Weird."</p><p>"Like he wasn't listening…if not to you, then who was he listening to?" Ryo thought aloud. That whole Digimon-Human bond was no joke. That much Jenrya could read in the other's expression. "This could be bad, if it's what I think it is."</p><p>"What do you mean?"</p><p>Ryo shook his head.<em> I can only think of one thing that might distract a Digimon like that.</em> But could he be sure? <em>They don't know where their friend is. And if he hasn't come back by now, it isn't because he won't. He can't. </em>The more Ryo thought about it, the more he was convinced Guilmon's disappearance hadn't been due to curiosity (as hinted by Terriermon), but by something else. For Ryo, it was always the worst-case scenario.</p><p>"Digimon develop bonds with humans," Ryo said quietly. A regretful twinge he ignored. "Not always, but sometimes. From what I've seen, it looks like you three have bondedwith your 'partners'." He held up a hand, barring any questions. "You wouldn't notice it – it's only obvious when one or the other is under some kinda stress, and that's if it's strong."</p><p>Jenrya and Terriermon exchanged startled glances at his words. Ryo couldn't help raising an eyebrow. Had they thought the only reason they were so close was because they were "friends"? <em>Human-Digimon bonds have nothing to do with friendship</em>, Ryo couldn't help thinking bitterly.<em> It never did</em>. His smile tightened, cooling.</p><p>"I<em>'</em>m getting somewhere with this. These bonds serve as a link between human and Digimon: from my understanding, they can convey one's feelings to the other's end, and vice versa. Among other things. I don't really know a lot more about them," Ryo's tone was sardonic. <em>Mostly because I never got a chance to learn about them. Getting almost killed </em>does<em> get distracting.</em>"The stronger the link, the more that can be felt through it. From what I'm hearing, Takato had a real strong bond with his partner. My guess is Guilmon must've felt something on his end..."</p><p>"…which means that Takato must be in trouble." Jenrya picked up the train of thought, his eyebrows knitting as he turned this over in his mind. <em>We have bonds?</em> This was a new concept; he'd assumed that Terriermon and him being best friends was enough. But a bond? <em>Is it something more? </em>Jenrya glanced at Ryo only to find the other boy met his gaze without flinching. <em><br/></em></p><p>"Fear and pain are two of the strongest emotions. Because the main 'instincts' – the coding – of a Digimon is to fight, they're most sensitive to this. It's the strength of the bond that determines how much of it gets channeled to the other end."</p><p>Terriermon's comfortable weight on his Tamer's shoulder shifted. Jenrya couldn't see his partner's round face, but he had an idea that Terriermon was miffed at being referred to as "only" programming. His voice bordered on petulant. "But why didn't Guilmon feel anything before? I mean, he was pretty normal a few days ago."</p><p>"Don't know, I've been wondering about that myself. Takato was probably fine before yesterday." Ryo's face hardened as he regarded Jenrya and Terriermon. "Must be bad. Real bad. Normal pain doesn't drive a Digimon to wander off like that." For the first time, he looked away, his face stony, even through the smirk. "Trust me on this; Digimon have a crazy high tolerance for that kinda thing. It was probably something else. Worse."</p><p><em>Something </em>else<em>?</em> Jenrya wondered as he stared at Ryo. <em>If Takato's hurt, what could be worse?</em></p><p>"It's always taking a turn for the worst, isn't it?" Ryo remarked. "But I don't think Takato's gonna be the only one in trouble when things heat up."</p><p>Terriermon ogled at Ryo, his small mouth gaping open. Jenrya himself was torn about his options at the moment. There was of course a sharp fear for Takato – he was his <em>best friend</em>.There were hundreds of things he could have (should have) done that day, before Takato disappeared. He'd been planning to invite Takato over to his house – why hadn't he done it earlier?</p><p>"Doesn't matter what you didn't do for Takato and Guilmon," Ryo said bluntly, noticing the looks. "Right now, what matters is what you do next."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The afternoon passed into the dusky evening sky as the fog near Rainbow Bridge thickened. It was a strange fog, those passing by commented to one another, so weirdly thick like a wall. But most shrugged it off and went on their way. No one noticed as the fog spread its ghostly tendrils across the waters. As the mist continued to grow, the center of began to become very solid, a dark shape gradually taking form. Shouldering a huge hammer, the Digimon continued to solidify…</p><p>Sitting at a computer console, Kincaid tilted her head, as if listening to something out of a human's limited hearing range. She could <em>feel </em>the approaching Digimon. Given he'd digivolved, it was hard not to. She had to hide her grin with a gloved hand before the others around her noticed. A little late, but better then never.</p><p>
  <em> The Shield. He's bio-emerging.</em>
</p><p>Below Hypos, the Juggernaut paused in the middle of routine sorting. The files – information on the last humans involved with Digimon – were put on hold as it began accessing the nearest electronics to the disturbance's site, for a moment focusing its attention on fixing the location. Several CCTV feeds rotated toward the bay. A visual of a heavy "fog" over the suddenly placid waters popped up.</p><p>Ah, it was the next of the Line the Deceiver spoke so highly of.</p><p>
  <strong>The Shield. NOTED.</strong>
</p><p>Losing interest, the supercomputer went back to its tasks. There were other, more important matters that needed to be tended to. Both systems agreed it was necessary to work as efficiently as possible – already they could sense the Golems that began coming into the Real World. Three here. Two in Ueno. Four to the south. Their Creator put thought into action. Though there would certainly be a larger scale of awareness from the humans, noticing the growing number of dead, the Shield would be settled in by then. By the time the humans started fleeing Tokyo, it would be too late.</p><p>They wouldn't be able to leave.</p><p>
  <em> …then you'll feed again, won't you?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> I will. Am I not more important than the lives of strangers?</strong>
</p><p>Without a question. There was nothing that meant more than Jenrya's well-being. After all, it was important he ate. The stronger Jenrya was, the longer they would stay together. The dominant side saw no reason to correct this line of thinking. Let the remnants of the companion system believe whatever he wanted: after all, he wasn't coherent enough to make his own decisions. The Juggernaut returned to the files but, even then, it kept an eye on its primary target. An opportunity would arise. They could wait, both of them. There were two more that were to be dealt with as soon as that was finished.</p><p>It would, of course, use different tactics than those employed by the Digimon. There were easier ways to hunt these humans down, these humans who broke the taboo. The companion system's memories were easily dissected by the Juggernaut, picking out weaknesses that could be exploited, flaws which could be used against the targets.</p><p>Evening progressed. The large, armored Digimon slid into the water with barely a splash as the Digital Field faded away. And things were quiet, once more, as more strange lights appeared over the city's sky. They were almost pretty, observers remarked. Those who saw the lights described them as glowing balls, like large stars.</p><p>More unearthly lights, and, in the morning, more bodies.</p><p>The Juggernaut absorbed everything: nine wasn't enough at all. Jenrya must eat more.</p><p> </p><p><strong>To be continued...</strong><br/>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Blue Eyed Encounter</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Reika approaches Yamaki about their relationship, Kaminmon receives new orders from his Mistress, and Jenrya agrees to introduce Ryo to Ruki. He sees, for the first time, the false Takato.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p><strong>(</strong> <strong>Blue Eyed Encounter)</strong></p><p>That damned machine made Kaminmon nervous.</p><p>If he had a choice, he wouldn't be standing so close to the thing, but his Mistress told him to come here and he obeyed without question. He was willing to follow her orders, but it didn't mean he had to like all of them. The Champion's tail lashed with concealed agitation, grinding his exposed fangs against one another as he flicked a suspicious look at the silent, hulking shadow of the Juggernaut. From here, it was a towering black dome dwarfing him.</p><p>Apparently this...thing was sentient. Watching.</p><p>Kaminmon turned his equine head as one of the monitors lit up. For a moment he watched the seemingly meaningless images flicker across, before looking away. It was unnerving, the way everything around the Juggernaut was constantly turning on and off, sometimes too quickly for him to catch.</p><p>The thing just couldn't be trusted. <em>It's not alive</em>. A glare at the Juggernaut. <em>And if it's not alive, it can't be killed</em>. If he couldn't kill it, it meant he couldn't take care of it if the thing ever went rogue (though Kincaid had only laughed at his concern). No doubt the machine knew that. There was an almost smug, self-assured air as the dozens of lesser computers – sitting on stands, shelves, all left behind – flicked on and off. Kaminmon scowled, shifting his weight on his cloven hooves.</p><p>"Getting along?"</p><p>Kaminmon bowed his head as Kincaid sauntered into view, passing through the aisle of computers screens. He wanted dearly to avert his eyes from the horrible form his Mistress wore so often these days, but he managed to assert some self-control. It was a truly ugly form, in his opinion, worse even than the boy-one he had to take in order to blend in. <em>But I don't have to stay in it as long as she. </em>Her simian tail was gone, her round face narrowed and devoid of the soft coat of mocha fur. Her silver-flecked eyes were much smaller, shaped almost like almonds now. Tiny. Human-beady. Human hair hid her ears, so small and misshapen now. She didn't look at all like the legendary Council war hero.</p><p>A slight shudder. Humans always were the ugliest creatures.</p><p>"I await your wishes, my lady," Kaminmon began, careful to keep any signs of revulsion from coloring his voice. Kincaid waved the formalities aside with a gloved hand. "I have done as you asked."</p><p>"What'd he say?"</p><p>"He wanted to think it over."</p><p>The Deceiver shook her head, her violet curls bouncing. "Three days. That's all. If he hasn't made a decision by then, bring him here." She grinned at the Juggernaut's silent form. "I'm sure we can handle a lone traitor."</p><p>Kaminmon caught the evident pride in her voice, the Champion feeling his shaggy mane bristle with jealousy, the feathers on his wings rising like hackles. The Mistress wasn't praising <em>him</em> for his work, not this time. Oh no, it was that <em>machine</em>, that abomination! To make matters worse, the screens were blinking on and off, faster and faster, as if laughing at him. They were definitely mocking him, he decided with a barely concealed growl. Kincaid didn't appear to notice, pulling off a dark blue glove as she continued.</p><p>"The next operative has arrived, but he won't be settled in for a few days. They're sending more Golems over from the Digital World, but it's going to be a while before we'll harvest enough for the breach."</p><p>"I would be honored if there is anything I can do to assist you."</p><p>Kincaid held out her hand before her. Too-long fingers were distorted by the mirage-like quality of the air. "Perhaps you can." Kaminmon watched with morbid fascination as a lone wire snaked up from the darkness before the Juggernaut's shell and idly tapped against her wrist. Rather than slapping it away, she let it absorb some of the excess energy, the red fading a little bit as the wire sucked it up greedily. "There's an area to west of us I want you to patrol. On foot. Along Shinjuku Central Park, probably further north. I've just been informed by the Council several Digimon recruits decided to bio-emerge prematurely."</p><p>Kaminmon nodded, the fur at his sharply accented cheekbones fluttering with the motion. "It will be done, my lady."</p><p>"Escort them somewhere safe and make sure no one sees you. I'll see to the punishment for their disobedience. After that, explain to them the situation." Kincaid shooed away the wire, pulling on her glove again and hiding the muted red glow. "I expect those brats to try to intercept them. Make sure they don't interfere."</p><p>"I will. They will not get past me," he said. But it was with distaste that he agreed. <em>I'll have to use that boy-body again.</em> It was disgusting and it chafed at him, to have to walk on two legs when he was meant to use four. But on the other hoof, he could toy with those humans again – and there were more, more than just that little girl he came across when he stole the digivice.</p><p>Kincaid still talking, musing out-loud. "I'm still rather surprised by the Council's choice for the Shield." Kaminmon kept a respectful silence, clopping after her as she moved down the aisle of glowing screens. "But maybe he brought his forge with him. Eager to prove himself, I bet."</p><p>Kaminmon tilted his long snout, absorbing this news. The grotesque Digimon wasn't privy to a lot of information, but he knew there weren't many forges in the Digital World – there weren't very many forests to supply fuel for any more than a few. <em>So if he's the Shield, then it can only be Zudomon.</em>Of course. From the rumors, Zudomon was able to create anything with his forge and his mighty hammer: no doubt he would be working on something to pen the humans in. Zudomon was formidable. Already he was something of a myth as tales of a hermit, working in self-imposed isolation at his legendary forge, spread across the Digital World.</p><p>Personally, Kaminmon was surprised the Council (they were shrouded in mystery to him) would entrust such a task to one of the original eight traitors. After all, from what he'd heard, they consorted with <em>humans</em> – he was still trying to figure out how those insignificant creatures managed to entice the former failures to their side – and after the whole thing, they were unstable. All had tried, at some point or another, to delete themselves. In the Digital World, there was no term for that and he hadn't been unable to understand the point until the Mistress told him. They had, she said with a disapproving swish of her tail, tried to commit "suicide". "Suicide" was a purely human thing, she continued. It was unthinkable among common Digimon. There wasn't even a word for such an evil decision. <em>Typical humans. Bugs. Only </em>they<em> would think up something like that.</em></p><p>It was apparently another weakness that rubbed off on the humans' "partners", the Mistress mused to her servant, after coming back from a late night meeting with her lover; but Kaminmon could only think of the data that would've been wasted, if the eight had succeeded. To him, the idea of "suicide" seemed selfish<em>/Such a waste</em>! Even now, he couldn't understand <em>why</em>.</p><p>But the Council and the Mistress had bestowed their forgiveness on them, even honored one of them with the position of Shield.</p><p>"Currently, he's in Odaiba's waters, so I won't be into contact with him until he's finished." Kincaid shrugged carelessly, her silver eyes not even on her servant now, much to his sullen indignation. "I'll ask Nagamora to brief him – he's closer than we are…" The violet-haired woman blinked, as if suddenly noticing Kaminmon was still here, and snapped her dismissal. "I thought I gave you an order."</p><p>Kaminmon hurriedly lowered his head, all the while cursing himself. As his wings flared open and he began to visualize the two gateway points of his Divine Mist, he swore the Juggernaut's computers were beeping (chuckling?) scornfully at him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Sorry I kept you waiting," Juri said as she crossed the lawn.</p><p>"It's okay. I asked you out here. I should be the one apologizing." Jenrya ducked his head sheepishly as she joined him.</p><p>Juri sat down on the curb, smoothing her skirt. Jenrya wasn't at all sure where he should begin. A humorless mental chuckle. <em>I don't think "Hey, I don't know what's happening, but you've gotta leave now" is going to be an easy sell</em>. His classmate toyed expectantly with the puppet, lying limp across her lap.</p><p>"So, uh, Calumon's staying with you?"</p><p>Juri looked up from the worn snout of the dog-puppet. She nodded. "Yeah. I mean, he comes and goes, but he usually comes back at the end of the day. So I guess you could say he's with me." Her questioning gaze fixed on him.</p><p>"That's good. Cool." Jenrya cast about for something – anything – to ease into why he was here, but he kept drawing a blank. With a sigh, he ran a hand through his shortly cropped blue hair, speaking up. "So, uh, about that vacation you're going on…I don't mean to be nosy, but what day are you guys leaving?"</p><p>"We <em>were </em>going to leave in two weeks, but…" Juri trailed off. The puppet took over. It rose from her lap and turned to look up at him, giving an excited bark at Jenrya. "But Juri's dad said they're leaving earlier, woof!"</p><p>"Why?"</p><p>The snout of the puppet scrunched. "Because Juri's dad saw the news this morning. And Juri saw lights last night!"</p><p>What was she talking about? What did lights have to do with anything? "Lights?"</p><p>"Lights, two of them, like big fireflies! Flying in zig-zag! Woof!" Juri made a face at the puppet. Clearly she didn't quite agree with its choice wording. She clapped a hand over the puppet's mouth, taking over. "I saw lights last night. They were moving in the air, like they were flying! My little brother kept saying they were UFOs who would suck out our brains and eat our souls. Or something." She gave a low giggle. "I don't know what they were. But my parents are getting weird about everything. So we're leaving sooner than Dad planned. In two days."</p><p><em>Sounds like Ryo was getting all paranoid for nothing</em>, Jenrya thought wryly. "Are you going to take Calumon with you?"</p><p>"If he wants to, I guess I could sneak him with us," Juri paused, brushing a strand of hazel hair from her face as she glanced aside at Jenrya. "Something wrong?"</p><p>Jenrya shifted his position on the wall and shook his head.</p><p>"Not really. A… I guess you really can't call him a friend, but he was wondering when you were going to leave. It's really hard to explain." <em>Oh, </em>that's<em> good. </em>Jenrya, frowning slightly, tried again. "I'm not really sure how to explain this – you know how we're fighting those wild Digimon?"</p><p>Juri blinked and looked down at her puppet, avoiding his gaze, her expression unusually solemn. "Yeah…Takato told me."</p><p>"There's more coming, I think. So maybe it would be better for you to stay out of Tokyo for a while." Jenrya scratched the back of his head.</p><p>Juri absently nodded as the Tamer clumsily tried to explain himself. She didn't say anything, but she was a little glad they were leaving early – she hadn't mentioned that those lights, dazzling and haunting, had sent a chill through her. In the past, she'd always used her puppet to make light of anything, even serious stuff, but now she couldn't. It just didn't seem right. <em>Jenrya and Takato, and even Ruki, they're all fighting, with their partners. What am I doing?</em> She couldn't help feeling ashamed at her relief earlier, that she could leave. <em>I'm doing nothing. I want to be strong like them, but…</em></p><p>She only smiled pleasantly as Jenrya finished his awkward explanation.</p><p>"I understand." Juri got to her feet, gathering the dog-puppet in her arms . With a slight nod of her head, she turned and left, crossing the lawn's green expanse. She waved for a second, calling out. "Don't worry about us, we'll be okay!"</p><p>Jenrya watched his classmate leave, his mouth in a thin line. It was hard to tell what was on Juri's mind sometimes – she was (<em>is</em>, he reminded himself) like Takato in that aspect. At first glance, they were both happy, kind. Satisfied. But Jenrya, on the rare occasion, caught that unfamiliar expression on Takato's face when they'd been alone, when his friend thought he wasn't looking. He wasn't sure what to make of it. He hadn't said anything, hadn't ever thought to bring it up. Jenrya let out the breath he'd been holding.</p><p>"Why, may I ask, were you so concerned about her well-being?"</p><p>Jenrya almost pitched off the wall in surprise.</p><p>Half-hidden in the trees behind him, Renamon gazed down at the human, concealed behind the height of a tall maple and the shadows it cast. She made no move to come forward, instead remaining where she was, a patch of tall sunlight captured in a graceful portrait of curves.</p><p>"I really don't know," Jenrya said. "But I figured it couldn't hurt to talk to her."</p><p>"So then this wasn't your idea."</p><p>"Nope."</p><p>Renamon reached up and leaned one arm, rippling with muscles under her flaxen coat of fur, against the tree trunk. "Whose idea was it?"</p><p>"Ryo Akiyama's," Jenrya sighed. The Tamer glanced up at the sky: a perfectly blue ceiling arced overhead, so blue and still that it surprised him. Almost as if it was holding its breath, waiting for something that he couldn't see. "I don't know why. But what else is new?"</p><p>Renamon ignored the bitterness staining the human's voice. She hadn't been lurking in this area to bother with banal chit-chat and she wasn't one to beat around the bush, so she felt no particular wish to inquire how he was feeling or why. <em>Good. He feels the pressure of responsibility. </em>From her understanding, Jenrya had been suddenly thrust in the "leader" position – it would be a good way for him to grow up, she thought. Renamon got down to business.</p><p>"We can't keep doing this, this way of 'winging' it." Her bush of a tail, glinting gold in the patch of light through the trees, swayed idly as she spoke. Although she didn't say anything, she was tense, uneasy. "Ruki says we need to come up with a plan – I agree with her. We've been wasting our time."</p><p>Jenrya's gray eyes narrowed. Were they implying that - ? But Renamon didn't say anything else, except:</p><p>"We'll be expecting you at Central Park's entrance. Perhaps Terriermon would like to come," Renamon appeared to fade backward as she spoke, her long snout lowering. "Don't make us wait."</p><p>And then she was gone.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The sloppiness, the laziness and the procrastination Yamaki saw in these reports...</p><p><em>Incompetent idiots,</em> he scowled, shaking his head as he frowned at the papers. Reika told him he was far too critical of other people and that he expected too much, made impossible demands. He wouldn't know if his standards were set too high, because as far as he was concerned, it didn't matter, as long as the crews under him would <em>do their damned jobs</em>. Was that too much to ask?</p><p>Leaving the reports on his desk, Yamaki got to his feet. His main office was private, thankfully, with a spectacular view of Shinjuku sprawled below. Standing before the wide window Yamaki could see it was a clear day. <em>Winter must be coming</em>, he mused absently. Reached into his pocket, he silently lit a cigarette from Yayoi's lighter. Surprising to think of how much time passed. Another year down.</p><p>A thin tendril of smoke drifted up from the cigarette, wound its way past the dark lens of his sunglasses. Yamaki watched the people – like little ants – bustle down below, the line of cars and buses so distant they looked like toys from here.</p><p><em>Four years, huh? </em>Yamaki supposed he hardened himself against the whole thing after a while, for there were times when he could only feel cold fury, instead of the sadness he knew was more natural. But he hadn't forgotten. Behind the sunglasses, his eyes narrowed. The sun would be setting in a few hours. Days were shorter now.</p><p>And so was time. Frowning, Yamaki turned back to his desk, intending to stub out the cigarette and return to the Yuggoth deck. He hesitated, his eyes dropping to his open laptop.</p><p>Blinking away was a new email message.</p><p>The cigarette forgotten, Yamaki leaned over his desk to check out the screen. Despite his surprise, someone really <em>was</em> sending him an e-mail. This address was only used if it was something pressing, something important needed his immediate, personal attention, which brought up more questions. Had someone broken through all the security? His curiosity rose as he stared at the small icon at the left hand side of the screen. If it was a virus, he was confident he could deal with it himself. Absently stubbing out the still-burning cigarette in the ashtray, Yamaki clicked the mail icon.</p><p>A window popped up with a text document in what looked to be English. It didn't help he wasn't familiar with the language and he could only make out a few characters (no, "letters", he had to remind himself) that he thought he recognized. It was only a few paragraphs long, but it might as well have been a collection of scribbles. Normally he'd throw it away, but one word caught his eye, after he'd put the scratchy "letters" together with some difficulty.</p><p>DIGIMON.</p><p>That got his attention.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Standing at the door, Reika paused. Usually she only ventured into the upper levels if Yamaki desired her presence (and not necessarily for work, depending on his mood), and she was unsure if she should be interrupting him now. Her hand hovered over the door as she eyed at the gleaming wood. The model's lips pursed. True, the man might be her boss, but he didn't rule over her night and day, contrary to whatever he might think. If she had an issue to bring up, she could damn well do so without permission.</p><p>Reika gave a brief knock as she pushed open the door, holding a file against her chest as the tall woman let herself in. Unsurprisingly Yamaki was busy with something, staring at something on his laptop. Reika cleared her throat, her boss glancing up at the sound.</p><p>"What is it?"</p><p>Reika readily met the eyes hidden behind the sunglasses. Standing tall, she held out the folder. "The new reports. They finished all repairs on Yuggoth." She continued without stopping as Yamaki made his way around the desk, moving in that familiar, brisk stride she knew too well. "The tech teams are working on the lower levels."</p><p>He took the folder. There, there was the familiar twist of his finely boned hand, moving just like she predicated, with that same, fluid gesture. It never changed, the personality that subconsciously colored those movements. Their fingers brushed. Reika's face was expressionless as her boss hardly spared a glance at the folder.</p><p>Yamaki's tone was dry. "News like this doesn't warrant a trip upstairs."</p><p>Reika refused to back down, even though he was using his spare-me-the-idiocy tone again. <em>And you can spare me the crap, Yamaki</em>, Reika thought with a touch of irritation. <em>I'm not like the others, no matter how much you try to pretend I am</em>.</p><p>"I didn't come up here to play messenger," she replied. "But I thought you'd like to know while I'm up here."</p><p>Her boss seated himself behind his desk as she was talking, tossing the folder near the laptop and leaning back into his chair. Reika wasn't surprised he hadn't bothered to offer a seat and Yamaki wasn't anymore surprised to see his employee sit down without asking. A tie, once again. For a while, there was nothing to say, as they looked across the wooden expanse of the desk at each other. Sunlight slipped into the room through the blinds, cutting across the room.</p><p>Reika broke the silence first. "I was going to bring it up – earlier, preferably in private. This isn't work related, so I decided to get this over sooner than later."</p><p>To his credit, Yamaki's only reaction was the slightest change in his posture; he leaned back a little in his seat, but that was all. The cigarette sent up a thin wisp of smoke. Reika noted somewhere, in the back of her mind, that he seemed to be smoking a lot more often these days. His silence was gesture for her to finish up whatever she wanted to say.</p><p>"I want to know how long you want this to go on." Reika said evenly. "Because I'm starting to think maybe it's been going on too long."</p><p>Yamaki's face was impassive behind the shades. Typical of him. Yamaki Mitsuo, after all, was blind to everything that didn't have to do with Hypnos and "eliminating" the digital menace, she thought to herself sourly. In the years she knew him, never once had he asked anything personal about her, shown any interest in her except for the things that needed to be taken care of after hours. Nor had he acknowledged her when they happened to come across each other on the streets. <em>The man simply doesn't care -</em></p><p>"And what makes you think that?"</p><p>Reika blinked. She'd expected him to wave her away, indicating fine, things were finished between them. That they were done and over. That they could go their separate ways. She quickly regained her composure. "I've been thinking about it – us – for a while. I didn't apply for a job here just to have sex."</p><p>Across the desk, Yamaki made a sound that could almost be mistaken for a chuckle.</p><p>"True."</p><p>"But I'm not at your beck and call for these sorts of things. That's not my job."</p><p>"Go on."</p><p>Reika pursed her lips. Before, Yamaki hadn't displayed any concern about what she thought. But now he was looking calmly at her.</p><p>"I'm not here for these sorts of relationships. I'm here to work, to do my job." Reika shrugged. "I can understand you needing me for a few months to look for someone else. But if it's something long-term…" Another shrug. The purple-haired model said nothing more. There was simply nothing to say: Yamaki knew that she would continue to honor the terms of their "agreement" if he wanted it to continue.</p><p>"…Is that all?" Yamaki mused. Taking the cigarette from his lips, he continued. "So, basically, you want something different. And it would only be expected of me to be businesslike about this and close it, is what you're saying."</p><p>"Something along those lines."</p><p>"I'll think about it. There are some other things I need to see to," behind the sunglasses, he glanced at his laptop. "But we can discuss this – in depth – somewhere less formal. Thank you."</p><p>The conference was over. Reika got up and left without another word, her stride unhurried as she left Yamaki's office. Reaching up and removing his sunglasses, he glanced down at the laptop. The screen was still glowing, the message still where he left it open. It wouldn't be difficult to get the thing translated. But, staring down at the laptop, Yamaki didn't do anything. For a moment, it didn't really matter as much as before.</p><p>For some reason, he kept thinking back to Reika instead of work.</p><p><em>So she wants to make some changes</em>. Fine, that was understandable – everyone had the potential to be bored. It was foolish of him not to foresee this little complication. He knew Reika relatively well, but now, thinking about it, not that well. Come to think of it, he didn't really know her beyond the physical things and whatever was in her profile. It wasn't that there was no way of knowing; he'd simply seen no reason to go any deeper.</p><p>Yet another thing that he was going to have to plan.</p><p>As if it wasn't hard enough keeping his eye on the monsters threatening his world, it looked like now he could look forward to something he wasn't at all prepared for: personal matters.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid stretched, flinging arms over her head with abandon. There was an audible pop and for a brief second she was certain her limbs were close to dislocating. It was funny at times just how fragile humans were. Sort of exhilarating, actually! Exciting to think that she was actually <em>vulnerable</em>. Of course, Nagamora didn't seem to share her optimism. No, the Founder was still paranoid about the whole thing – if he was to be wounded, he would prefer it to be from honorable battle, <em>not s</em>omething foolish because he simply wasn't being careful with a frail human body. "It," he told her before leaving for the Real World years ago, "isn't something to look forward to. I don't like this feeling of helplessness."</p><p><em>Oh well. At least </em>I'm<em> having fun</em>.</p><p>Kincaid knelt down next to the open panel before her. Holding one hand up to keep her hair from getting into her eyes, she peered into the mess of cables. All had been mysteriously disconnected, ejected from their sockets – once again, the Juggernaut was looking after its own interests. It would keep rejecting the wiring for the breakers no matter how many times the humans tried to reconnect them. It wanted full access to the building it resided under.</p><p>She rocked back, her butt plopping softly against the tiles. It wasn't a good idea to try contacting Nagamora. The Founder was more than busy while her job wasn't that difficult and it would get even easier once the Shield was ready. <em>Hell, I might as well resign at that point</em>. No point in trying to conceal something when it didn't matter anymore. In a few days, she would have a lot of free time on her hands.</p><p>Kincaid blew a hearty sigh through her bangs. <em>Sucks that Nagamora gets all the fun…</em></p><p>"Something wrong?"</p><p>Kincaid glanced up as Reika joined her, the taller tech seated herself in a nearby swiveling chair, her nails tapping idly on the armrest. Something bothered the human. They were so hard to read sometimes, what with their unpredictable behavior and all. But Kincaid didn't see any reason why she should go out of her way to understand them.</p><p>Kincaid gave a wave of dismissal, flapping her hand lazily.</p><p>"Nah. Bored. You?"</p><p>"Somewhat."</p><p>Right now Kincaid was in no mood for pretending to be friendly with a human. After all, there were a lot of things that she should be thinking about, such as formulating plans for the future. Trying to figure out an efficient way to get more Golems into the Real World. Preparing for a coming army. That sort of thing. Real work.</p><p>Reika glanced at Kincaid, frowning to herself. She had never been able to actually voice it, but there was something off about Kincaid Donovan. A vibe. Or something. Her hair was too bright, a shade of purple that wasn't natural even if it was dyed. Her eyes were too luminous, too catty, embedded with flat shards of crystalline silver. The way she moved was strange, too, like sometimes she didn't know what to do with her arms and legs. A few times she smacked her head into things, as if she was surprised at her height. A lot of small things, really.</p><p>Probably not enough to go running to Yamaki about.</p><p>Speaking of her boss, she had no idea what to make of her meeting with him.<em>A place less formal, huh?</em> <em>Any more informal and it's in danger of becoming a date</em>. The very idea was ridiculous. Yamaki Mitsuo simply didn't run things like that. There was probably some other ulterior motive. That, or maybe Yamaki was so paranoid he thought the walls of his office were bugged now. Maybe that was it. Although Yamaki's work was unknown to the public, he was bound to have made some enemies with that attitude of his.</p><p><em>But I can't be used against him.</em>If that had been the case, Yamaki would never risk the nightly visits. She supposed she'd never understand the man completely. Sometimes she wondered why she even tried in the first place.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"So she's leaving then?" Ryo was in the middle of shrugging out of his heavy coat. "Awesome."</p><p>Trying not to shiver in the biting breeze, Jenrya hugged himself tightly for warmth and nodded. Awesome was one way of putting it.</p><p>Ryo was waiting for him again, leaning casually against the trunk of a withering tree and watching him approach. It was unnerving how Ryo seemed to have a knack for appearing out of nowhere like that; it was impossible to find the new student before, no matter how hard he looked around Shinjuku. But now he was always there whenever Jenrya had something to say, something to report. Ryo would be waiting then. But only then.</p><p>Today Ryo was less subdued than before, the smirk hovering, as if daring the world to throw its best at him and to get it the hell over with. But things weren't that simple, and Jenrya noticed the dark circles under Ryo's eyes. Despite whatever impression Ryo wanted to give, he wasn't as unconcerned as he appeared to be. There was no doubt in Jenrya's mind that Ryo hadn't slept much. <em>I guess it makes sense when you don't know when or where you're gonna get attacked. </em>But was that just it? Or was it something else? What else was going on his life?</p><p>Jenrya glanced down at Ryo. The older boy was leaning back, his arms resting along the back of the wooden bench and watching a dog bounding after its owner across the pond. The smug expression was still there. But so were the dark bags.</p><p>"You should come with us to meet Ruki, Ryo. She's also a Tamer. We're going to see if there's anything we can do."</p><p>"Yeah, right."</p><p>Jenrya ignored his cynical remark.</p><p>"It's safer, anyway. I mean, if what you say is true about your D-Arc, you don't have any other protection. Renamon and Terriermon will be there, so it's a lot safer than staying at home or something."</p><p>"..Sometimes I wonder why I even care any more," Ryo muttered under his breath. His voice rose as he turned his head to look at Jenrya standing next to the bench. "Okay, okay, I'll come." He shrugged, a dry smile on his face. "Might as well get it over with before those bastards finish what they started."</p><p>Jenrya was startled at this. His eyebrow's shot up. Ryo's mood changed like mercury and it almost sounded like he was resigned to...dying? In the near future? As if…as if he had been expecting it for a while, as if he was laughing darkly at the whole thing. <em>Did he know that if he came to me they – whoever </em>they<em> are – would come after him?</em> Jenrya had been wondering that for a while. From what little he knew of Ryo, the older kid simply didn't take unnecessary risks. And he already knew he was a potential target, from the sounds of it. Jenrya glanced aside at him. Ryo was looking away again as leaves rasped and fluttered from the tree above, his profile grim.</p><p>A sudden thought. <em>Maybe he isn't here only to help us</em>. It could be something else.</p><p>
  <em>What are you waiting for?</em>
</p><p>"You'll be safer with us," Jenrya said quietly. "Terriermon and I can handle whatever those things were."</p><p>"I'm sure you two can."</p><p>"Then what's with the attitude?" Jenrya was surprised to find himself snapping back.</p><p>Unimpressed, Ryo waved the outburst away. "Just thinking you're wasting your time protecting me is all." All too true. Jenrya was being way too optimistic about the whole thing. Decidedly pessimistic, Ryo considered himself to be the exact opposite: a realist. By seeing all the things that could go wrong meant he was better prepared than if he turned a blind eye to it all. "Anyway, I agreed to doing what I can. Where should I be meeting you?"</p><p>Jenrya was taken aback at this sudden change.</p><p>Ryo was being so...so <em>agreeable</em> all of a sudden.</p><p>"I guess two hours from now. Meet here. Then I'll take you to the meeting spot."</p><p>"Sure."</p><p>Ryo didn't watch Jenrya leave. Sitting back against the back of the bench, he closed his eyes. The dry whispers of leaves against each other, drifting down in spirals, in a gentle snow of orange, brown and reds. Even through his closed lids he could see a muted glow from the fall daylight. This would probably be the last time he would be able to sit and enjoy the most simple of things; he doubted he would have another chance. Hard to do that when you were either dead or running for your life. Again. Ryo opened his eyes, his mouth tightening into a line. Now he got to pretend to be some hero...again</p><p>It wasn't exactly something he looked forward to.</p><p>He leaned his head back, tilting until he could watch the endless expanse of sky above. A pure blue greeted him through the overhead branches. The Digital World's sky had been so different – there had been something just artificial about it, fake. As if it was trying to be something it simply wasn't. Ever since he'd stumbled back into the Real World, into Japan again, he'd become so much aware of how <em>alive</em> everything was here. Not like the Digital World. Dangerous as that place was, it was still run, in the end, by zeros and ones.</p><p>Still, it was embarrassing to think he was gonna get killed by a bunch of lousy numbers. Totally stupid.</p><p>Ryo's expression didn't change to follow his thoughts; he'd become so accustomed to the laid-back mask, to the easy-going smirk. His face was composed as his thoughts took an all-too familiar turn. <em>He's probably going to be appearing soon</em>. There wasn't a doubt mind they'd run into each other. Just a fact of life. <em>Probably still thinks I need to be "defeated". Or whatever.</em> It was only a matter of time. <em>I'd rather deal with </em>him<em> than with whatever the hell those things were earlier.</em></p><p>He'd be damned if he wasn't the one laughing when he (eventually) got killed. A bitter smile. <em>Times really changed. I never thought this stuff a few years ago. Never thought I was gonna die. </em>But the choice he'd been presented then changed everything. Making his way along the path winding along the man-made pond, Ryo wondered just whatever possessed him to go to the Digital World that day, so long ago. A glance up at the sky.</p><p>The memory of wandering, bleeding and dazed, was still burned into him. He'd wandered, somehow, back to Tokyo, back to where it started for him. <em>And maybe where it's going to end. Maybe I wasn't ever meant for this.</em></p><p>That was a thought. There were the new "Tamers" (he supposed he could've been categorized as one, once upon a time) after all. Their Digimon were reasonably strong, and, observing them, they weren't showing any signs of going feral on their partners. He would've recognized the indicators. Ryo would be lying if he said he wasn't jealous they got off better than he did. Fishing into his pocket, Ryo pulled out his D-Arc and ran his fingers over the smooth midnight-blue casing. Most of the functions wouldn't work without a partner. He didn't understand why he didn't throw it away. It was just another reminder of the Digital World, he told himself with distaste as he got up to walk.</p><p>Why keep the thing? By all rights, it should be easy to chuck it into the nearest trash can and get rid of the thing. Lose the memories it carried.</p><p>But…it still meant something to him, even now. Maybe one day he could toss it. But not now.</p><p>Maybe not ever.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"I'm going out!" Ruki announced.</p><p>Ruki's grandmother came shuffling up behind her in her old slippers as her granddaughter started lacing up her shoes. Ruki was well aware of the older woman's stare, but kept her eyes forward. Finishing her first sneaker, she went to work on the next, eyes on the ground. Something was on her Seiko's mind and she had no urge to find out just what it was. She began pulling her shoulder-length hair into a tight ponytail.</p><p>Getting to her feet, Ruki straightened her windbreaker and zipped up. Even as she did this, her grandmother's eyes were on her.</p><p>Seiko sighed, her worn face still settled in a perturbed expression. "When are you coming back?" She looked outside. "It's too cold to be going out."</p><p>"I'm okay. I'm bringing my jacket, see?"</p><p>"You could catch a cold. It's too cold."</p><p>Ruki shrugged. Getting sick was really the least of her worries, looking at the big picture and everything. "I'll be <em>fine</em>, Grandmother. I'm not going to be out long. I'll be back soon."</p><p>Ruki gave a quick wave as she trotted down the dark path, making her way from the lit house toward the gates. They were shut, and she had to struggle to pry it open just enough so she could slip through. Ever since that news report from the other day, her grandmother had become almost paranoid, locking the windows, doors and gates whenever they were alone. Seiko was worried about the mysterious death – Ruki could tell just by watching her grandmother. It bothered Seiko, the idea a person – in perfectly good health – could drop down dead.</p><p>The wind from earlier picked up as the Tamer wheeled her bicycle out onto the narrow street. Pausing at an intersection, she rode right, following the sidewalk. It would take at least a while before she reached the meeting place. Her violet eyes, focused ahead of her handlebars, narrowed. Would Takato dare to make an appearance? After last time? <em>I'd like to see him try</em><em>.</em>She wouldn't have any qualms about kicking the living snot out of him. Of course Jenrya would butt in before she got very far. Pacifist.</p><p>As for the new guy, Ruki had yet to meet this Ryo kid, so she couldn't pass any judgment. Something about his name seemed familiar...</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya found Ryo waiting where he'd promised he would, hands shoved in the pockets of his black coat. The taller boy looked up at the sound of Jenrya's footsteps.</p><p>"Let's go."</p><p>Dry leaves and debris skittered across their feet as they set off toward the park. Jenrya planned to lead the way, but it looked like it wouldn't be necessary. Almost as if in a daze, Ryo picked his way down the emptying streets, face uncharacteristically pale. Terriermon and his Tamer exchanged looks. There was something on the older boy's mind. Jenrya was dying to know what it was. Maybe it would answer the questions he still had. But he kept his mouth shut. Now wasn't the time.</p><p><em>This whole mess is what I should be thinking about.</em> He wasn't a leader, he had never made himself out to be one. Frankly, he hated the responsibility. <em>We gotta think up something. I have to figure out a way to keep Ryo protected from those things. And we have to find Guilmon.</em></p><p>No. He was going about this all wrong. Jenrya had to be calm, efficient about this. Get organized instead of flailing about blindly for a solution.</p><p><em>Problem One</em>: Ryo Akiyama.</p><p><em>What he </em>did<em> know</em>: Ryo had a D-Arc, but no apparent Digimon. The D-Arc's presence indicated he was once a Tamer, just like Takato, Ruki and Jenrya. Ryo had also been in the Digital World. Apparently he knew something or had done something to draw the attackers. Besides the D-Arc, Ryo had little to no protection. The attacks would come again. The attacks were intended to either kill.</p><p><em> What he </em>didn't<em> know</em>: what Ryo did in the Digital World. How long he was there. What happened there. Who is/was his Digimon and where is s/he now. Just how far Ryo's knowledge went.</p><p><em>Solution</em>: None so far. It wasn't a good idea for Terriermon to trail Ryo (he couldn't digivolve unless Jenrya was there). Ryo had to be protected, but just how, he wasn't sure.</p><p><em>Problem Two</em>: Takato Matsuda.</p><p><em>What he </em>did<em> know</em>: Takato hadn't run away in the middle of the night over a week ago. Takato didn't have his cards or his goggles. He did have his D-Arc and attacked Ruki to get it. He somehow knew she had it. Takato could be assumed to be hostile (much as Jenrya disagreed with this idea). Takato was still alive and had been prepared for a battle when he had disappeared. There was the chance there was someone/something acting as some kinda fake.</p><p><em>What he </em>didn't<em> know</em>: Why Takato disappeared. Where he had gone to then. What he planned to do with his D-Arc. How he knew Greymon was coming (according to Ruki's words). Where he was now. What had happened when Guilmon disappeared. Just what Ryo wanted to talk to him about. Who, if anyone, was parading about in Takato's likeness.</p><p><em>Solution</em>: Again, nothing. There was no way of finding Takato – Shinjuku's area was too large to cover. And with Guilmon missing, they wouldn't have even a chance of picking up an old scent, a hint. The only choice was to wait, hope he reappeared again.</p><p><em>Problem Three</em>: Unknown Threat</p><p><em>What he </em>did<em> know</em>: Something was going to happen. Something big, according to what Ryo hinted at. Something that could be end-of-Tokyo-big. Probably more wild Digimon would start appearing, in greater numbers, each more powerful than the next. The Tamers, as they were now, were most likely going to be too weak to deal with it. Something would have to change. People would die. Pretty much a given according to Ryo.</p><p><em>What he </em>didn't<em> know</em>: What exactly was going to happen. Just how soon. Would it be world-wide? How was Ryo planning to attempt to avert this (assuming he'd come to do so)? Was that option still available?</p><p><em> Solution</em>: Try to find more about it from Ryo. That...was about it.</p><p>Put like that, they were off to a stupidly depressing start.</p><p>Jenrya stared at Ryo's back. At least he was on their side - that he did know. Riding on his shoulder, Terriermon was quiet. <em>He's probably thinking</em>. Jenrya could only imagine what about.</p><p>It was weird to think he actually had a <em>bond </em>with the Digimon. Jenrya never thought their relationship anything special – well, besides the obvious – but it sounded like whatever linked them together was something different than "just" the normal ties of being pals. Was it fate? He chose Terriermon, when he'd first used him in the game. And Terriermon, in a different sense, chose him. Simple as that. Similar things had happened between Renamon and Ruki, Guilmon and Takato.</p><p>But not with Ryo. If there'd been a bond, it was gone or...something.</p><p>Jenrya quickened his pace, silently overtaking Ryo. Terriermon said nothing, his dark eyes scanning the area. The three crossed an empty boulevard: Jenrya, anticipating the still-shattered street-lamps, had brought a flash-light, and flicked it on. Parts of Shinjuku were already recovered from the power surge, but enough was still in the dark that he came prepared anyway. Jenrya, now in the lead, slowed as they neared Central Park, a slight frown on his face. Something wasn't right. It was really a vague feeling, nothing that screamed of danger. Just…something off. Ryo slowed as well, his face darkening. So the older boy noticed it too. Terriermon tugged lightly on a clump of blue hair.</p><p>"I think there was a digital field here recently."</p><p>Jenrya nodded. Maybe Ruki was already here; if so, she might've already taken care of it and this was only the residue. Or maybe not. Coming strolling in through the front suddenly didn't seem very smart. Best to come in from the side. Jenrya motioned for Ryo to follow him along the wall. The three moved quickly now. There was a side entrance around here. Passing under a lone street-lamp, he flicked his flashlight off. They were close enough and there was no point in broadcasting their presence any further.</p><p>Ryo spoke up, neutral. "Just a suggestion, but once we meet this Ruki, I think it'd be a good idea to find somewhere else to have a group huddle."</p><p>Jenrya glanced back at him. In the darkness, he couldn't see the other's face very well, only an outline.</p><p>Who knew what might else be appearing around the area? Keeping that word of advice mentally filed, Jenrya continued forward, one hand on the wall. They were approaching a corner of the wall, just around it should be the side gate. The lights over there had been replaced, making it easier for him to see. He went more confidentially now, his gray eyes adjusting. On his head, Terriermon shifted his weight, claws wound lightly in his hair to keep his balance. Behind him, Ryo was moving silently.</p><p>Terriermon lifted his head, his snout working. The uneasy feeling returned: there was something else out there. It was close, but he couldn't tell what it was, not with the fresh remnants of the digital field wrecking havoc on his senses. Jenrya himself was too distracted to notice, his thoughts only on the meeting ahead. He rounded the corner blindly.</p><p>And came face to face with Takato Matsuda.</p><p>Wide gray eyes met equally startled blue ones. Terriermon gasped, his claws tugging sharply at Jenrya's hair as he spotted the other Tamer and the hulking forms beyond the boy's shoulders. Behind them, Ryo started to reach instinctively for his D-Arc, his black gaze going right past Takato and locking onto the three Digimon beyond the cone of light. This wasn't good. They were severely outnumbered.</p><p>Jenrya stared, at a complete loss of words. Takato<em>?</em></p><p>The other boy quickly regained his composure, face darkening with hostility. Behind him, the three Ogremon rumbled threateningly, clubs scraping against the ground, unsure of how to react, Takato glanced at the little group before him. Jenrya took a step forward, half-pleading. Just what in the world was going on? For a brief moment, their eyes met again.</p><p>A haughty smile. One that held no recognition at all. Only disdain. Arrogance.</p><p>Takato suddenly burst into motion, lunging at Jenrya far faster than he would've believed possible for his friend, much less any human being. He was too shocked to move.</p><p>"Jenrya!"</p><p> </p><p><strong>To be continued…</strong><br/>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Will o' Wisp</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jenrya introduces Ruki to Ryo, Yamaki gets even more suspicious of his superior, the mysterious man known as Nagamora.  And Ryo has a close encounter with the Golems and is forced to ask Jenrya for help.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p>
  <strong>(</strong>
  <strong>Will o'Wisp)</strong>
</p><p>"Jenrya!"</p><p>Ryo cursed himself. Why the hell hadn't he seen this coming? Of course there would be some sort of shape-shifter! How else to replace a kid who vanished? It was so obvious, and whoever/whatever this shape-shifter was, he was strong. You had to be to retain that shape for very long. His shout didn't seem to have any effect on the other boy. Jenrya stood in his path, frozen in shock as the Takato Matsuda-look alike quickly closed the gap between them. Ryo sprinted recklessly forward, watching as the blue eyes lit up. A fist draw back, Takato's eyes wide and unblinking.</p><p>Ryo's push sent them tumbling off to the side and, with a deafening crack, Takato's fist slammed violently into the wall where Jenrya's head had been only seconds before. The stone cracked under the blow and a large portion of the wall shattered into a pile of rubble. Ryo scrambled to his feet, hauling Jenrya roughly up by his arm. No time for questions.</p><p>Ryo definitely didn't like these odds. It was three of them versus this freakishly powerful "human". Not to mention his buddies.</p><p>The Ogremon behind the blue-eyed Takato milled around in dull confusion, at a loss of what to do. Waiting for orders. One plus. <em>Good. They're not very independent. Or smart</em>. Ryo wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but he knew he couldn't. All Takato had to do was give the order and things would get even worse. For some reason he didn't. Maybe he was a glory hog.</p><p>"Jenrya, that's <em>not</em> Takato!" Ryo snapped. "We got no time for this! Attack him! Terriermon has to digivolve! I can't do this on my own!"</p><p>"But – " Jenrya started, visibly shaken.</p><p>"That's not him!"</p><p>It wasn't. It couldn't be. Ryo was right.</p><p>" 'Course I'm right!" Ryo spat. Jenrya probably wasn't even aware he said something. "Look at him!"</p><p>Takato, at the moment, had disengaged himself from the wall, shaking a stinging hand. If he had been human, his hand should've been a bloody pulp from hitting the wall like that. But there was no blood. Only a few rips, like tears in flesh-colored plastic, out of which a few particles of glowing green data slipped into the night air. His blue eyes rose slowly up as he faced Ryo, Jenrya and Terriermon again, a strange smile forming on his face. Too wide, with pointed needle-like fangs. That smile – that wasn't Takato's smile at all…</p><p>Ryo was gratified to see Jenrya getting back with the program. Straightening, Jenrya let Terriermon hop down and pulled out his D-Arc.</p><p>Takato crouched low, almost on all fours, a mocking expression twisting his face:</p><p>"I'm afraid a mere Rookie isn't going to be of much help!"</p><p>Terriermon assumed a defensive stance, beady eyes fierce. Jenrya was behind him and that was all he needed. Takato or no Takato, if Jenrya was okay with it, then so was he! They didn't know if this Digimon, posing as their friend, was a Champion or higher. Not only that, but he had a sinking feeling those Ogremon wouldn't stand there and be content just to watch, not if the battle dragged out. They weren't very intelligent, that was true, but neither were they big on the idea of patience.</p><p>Jenrya selected cards. Next to him, Ryo watched, hands in his pockets. There wasn't much he personally could do, except try to coach. No point in running, because they'd just catch him. That, or those freaky wires things would get him the moment he left the (relative) safety of Jenrya and Terriermon's company.</p><p>"Just because he looks like Takato doesn't mean he has the same human weaknesses," Ryo said aside to Jenrya. "Don't pull any punches."</p><p>The Tamer gritted his teeth. "Not planning to."</p><p>He had slipped his first card into his D-Arc just as the false Takato charged. Fingers splayed into claws, he slammed down his hand. Terriermon danced out of the way, his reflexes improved. With a grunt, Takato ripped his fingers from the holes they created in the sidewalk and stood upright. Without warning, he abruptly spun about, holding out a hand. There was a dull, rising humming sound as purple beads of light collected into a sparking ball. His hand tilted up sharply from the recoil as he released the energy ball, sending it rocketing at Terriermon.</p><p>Terriermon dodged the hissing blow, running along the wall as the bolt blew a large hole into it. Another followed suit. A hail of chips and dust rained down, clinking on the pavement. He leaped off, the bunny-Digimon retaliating with an attack of his own, spinning.</p><p>"<em>Bunny Twister</em>!"</p><p>The young human didn't even appear to feel the blow, turning to face Terriermon as he bounced off and landed on the sidewalk. There was a deafening screech as the boy reached out and, with a single, powerful wrench, tore the iron-gate off from the wall. He hurled the heavy metal at the smaller Digimon. Terriermon managed to scurry away from the projectile. The gate screeched harmlessly onto the empty street, throwing up sparks.</p><p>Takato's eyes narrowed, gleaming blue as he glanced over his shoulder at the Ogremon. They were growing increasingly restless, eager to join alongside their escort. A snapped order and they calmed down, cowed.</p><p>"I'm afraid I'm not impressed," Takato turned his attention back to Terriermon, "Much as I would love to play with you further, I haven't the time." He looked past the smaller Digimon, at Jenrya, then at Ryo. A flicker of recognition. "I'll kill you two nuisances and get it over with."</p><p>Ryo scowled. So this Digimon masquerading as Takato Matsuda knew about him. Instead of trying to pick him out before Jenrya, the imposter decided it made more sense to get rid of all of them. Great. Just great.</p><p>Terriermon wasn't going to stand for it. "Not if I can help it! Jenrya!"</p><p>Jenrya started to slash his card. "<em>Digi-Modify…!</em></p><p>A burst of light to Takato's left, the flare blindingly bright. Takato threw up his arms with an angry snarl, his blue eyes narrowed to slits as the light radiating from Terriermon brightened. So this human's slave was dependent on his master to digivolve? Best to ignore the slave, kill the master first. The slave would be useless without the human holding the power. He lowered his arm and measured this new threat. A Gargomon. Large for its species, but surely nothing to be afraid of. This new group of human children and their slaves couldn't be much stronger than the first group. He could handle this by himself! He wouldn't take the humiliation of letting Kincaid's pet abomination lurking underneath that big building best him.</p><p>Gargomon leveled his barrels with a click as Takato approached, his inhuman eyes unblinking. His enemy was in his sights.</p><p>Swallowing, Jenrya bowed his head. "Do it."</p><p>The Champion opened fire on Takato. The Tamer kept coming, walking right through the crossfire. His shoulder wrenched back as a shot plunged through it and tore open a bloodless gash. His face tilted back slightly as another grazed his cheek. Ribbons of shimmering green data streamed out as Takato began to speed up, his shoes touching lightly on the pavement of the sidewalk. With a sinking feeling, Gargomon realized none of his efforts were going to slow down this monster. But he had to keep trying -</p><p>He let out an involuntary squeak as a blue and tan blur – Takato! - suddenly rushed past. Spinning about on his hind paws, he started to lock onto his opponent; green muscled arms were abruptly grabbing clumsily at him with huge ham-fists. Wriggling frantically out, he ignored the Ogremon behind him and went frantically after Takato. No! The imposter was already practically upon them, his hand now before him and glowing purple. Jenrya was rooted in his spot, gray eyes wide. <em>Jenrya!</em></p><p>An explosion erupted at Takato's feet, forcing the energy blast to shoot wide of his intended targets. Gargomon's breath caught in relief as Takato, in open fury, turned to face this new threat.</p><p>Kyuubimon bounded toward them, Ruki riding behind her neck. Her Tamer ducked as Kyuubimon's multitude of tails rose up, shining with pale blue fire and howled as she let loose another assault. Caught by surprise, one of the Ogremon fell backward as the first wave of ghostly blow fireballs caught him in the face. Kyuubimon streaked past, ignoring the data spraying out as he was deleted. Ruki, nearly engulfed in the soft fur of her partner's mane, sat up as Kyuubimon quickly put herself between Takato and Jenrya. The remaining Ogremon retreated, suddenly finding these odds less appealing.</p><p>"Why don't you do yourself a favor and crawl back into whatever hole you came from?" Ruki glared murderously.</p><p>The fake-Takato tilted his head. "I'm afraid that's not possible."</p><p>Takato didn't even so much as flinch when Kyuubimon bared her fangs at him. This definitely wasn't Takato Matsuda. The green particles of data leaking out from numerous cuts were a dead give-away, while the fact he had nearly blown Jenrya and the stranger with him to sky high was another clue too. Ryo guessed that was probably Ruki Makino. He already liked her style.</p><p>Ruki took her eyes off the fake Takato for a moment. "Gargomon, change of plans. Tunnel. You know where."</p><p>Gargomon nodded and started to herd Ryo and Jenrya away. Everyone tensed, for one, unending moment. Takato was poised to attack once more, Kyuubimon bristling.</p><p>That was when the lights appeared in the sky.</p><p>With a hiss, Takato's blue eyes turned up, his expression one of annoyance. First four, then seven. Others joined them. Turning and dancing among each other several thousand feet up, the eerie balls of light twisted through the night sky and headed in a glowing stream overhead. The glittering thread of light wound its way under the stars, heading to some unseen destination. Ryo scowled, wondering just where he had seen this phenomenon before. Whatever they were, they spelled trouble.</p><p>Takato glared as if he could wipe the three humans off the face of the earth. He was presented with a choice. Finish the job, and risk losing the rest of the Ogremon. Or complete his task and deal with them later. The Mistress would be displeased if her servant came back empty-handed and his only excuse was he got distracted, side-tracked by targets that weren't even his to deal with in the first place. No, better to finish his task. He had already lost one Ogremon.</p><p>Ruki was startled to see Takato suddenly turn on his heel and walk away, disgruntled. Soon he, and the Ogremon tramping after him, were gone, vanishing into the shadows beyond the streetlights.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Ruki, this is Ryo Akiyama. Ryo, Ruki Makino."</p><p>Ryo and Ruki shook hands with equally guarded expressions. Each was distant, sizing up the other.</p><p>Jenrya sighed, crossing his arms over his chest as their hands dropped and the two turned to look at him. "I think saying this whole thing is out of our league is justified.</p><p>"No kidding," Ryo said brusquely.</p><p>Ruki shot a stare at him, who steadily ignored it. Terriermon and Renamon remained several yards away from their Tamers. In a hushed voice, the bunny-Digimon filled in Renamon about Ryo and everything that happened. The other Digimon nodded several times, her eyes glancing from time to time at the new human. Ryo shoved his hands in his pockets, slouching against the wall of the tunnel.</p><p>"Even if it is out of our league," Ryo paused, but made no attempt to correct "our" to "your", like Jenrya expected, "the question is, what can be done?"</p><p>Jenrya shook his head. "Exactly? What can we do? We don't even know what's going on."</p><p>"That's such a bad attitude, Jenrya," Ruki rolled her eyes. "The sky isn't falling yet."</p><p>"Hey<em>, I</em> think tonight was actually pretty productive," Ryo said sarcastically. "Aside from almost getting blasted to sky high, I'd say you guys learned a lot." He glanced from Ruki to Jenrya. "We know some Digimon is running around pretending to be Takato. But his job isn't to blend in – I'd say Takato happened to be the first one he came into contact with, so he copied his image first."</p><p>Ruki's eyebrows drew together. "So what was he doing out there?"</p><p>Ryo shrugged again. "Beats me."</p><p>"Those Ogremon." Jenrya mused, thinking back to the harrowing events not long ago. "He was leading them, wasn't he? Like some kinda guard?"</p><p>Ruki suddenly snapped her fingers.</p><p>"What if more Digimon bio-emerge? He might appear again. So long as we don't broadcast our presence, maybe we could follow him. See where he's going. Who knows?" Ruki was determined. "Maybe the real Takato is there."</p><p>Jenrya looked at her hopefully. It was definitely a plan, a good one in his opinion, better than anything he had come up with. Ryo himself nodded after giving it some thought. It <em>could</em> work…maybe it wouldn't save the world, but it was a start. If Takato was back, that meant the odds got a little bit better.</p><p>Ruki's plan was given the thumbs up. Jenrya and she would meet later to decide the specifics. That settled, she turned to Ryo.</p><p>"Jenrya said you might have some info about all the weird stuff that's been going on here. Heard you even went to the Digital World."</p><p>Ryo went silent for a moment. His voice, when he spoke, was tightly controlled. "So? It's none of your business. I only came to see if I could do something about the present, not the past." It was obvious he wasn't going to talk about whatever happened in the Digital World. Ruki only arched an eyebrow as if to say <em>yeah, that's not a good excuse</em>.</p><p>Jenrya diplomatically cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence.</p><p>"Okay, so let's focus on the present."</p><p>Ryo glanced from Jenrya to Ruki, his black gaze apathetic as his lips quirked up in a dry grin. "Only problem is, what answers I have might not make any sense. We need to have the right questions first before I can really be useful. I got my own ideas about what's going on here, but a lot of what I heard were rumors. But with all the action I saw then – and now – I think they're true."</p><p>Ryo ran a hand through his hair. Everyone's eyes were on him now. Now that he was here, he wasn't really sure how to go about this. When Ryo clawed his way out of the Digital World, he hadn't exactly been rehearsing his lines – in fact, this moment was the last thing on his mind at the time. Now that he was here, he wondered where to start.</p><p>"More Digimon are coming," Ryo said bluntly. "Not sure exactly when the invasion is, but they're definitely coming. I don't know how long it will take them to open the door between our world and theirs. It could be weeks, months. Even a year, but I doubt it'll take that long. The thing is, the whole Digital World has been united for this; all the warring factions, gone. All the wars there, gone. All Zones are governed by some sort of World Council." He took a breath and went on. "When the door opens, they will come in full force. There will be a huge massacre when that happens. Most likely everyone here in Tokyo, in Japan, will die. And that won't even be when the backlash from the interference between the Real and Digital World hits."</p><p>There was only a stunned silence.</p><p>"I came here to try to do something about it. The Digimon you've seen running around – the Tamer-less ones – are part of it. Even when I was back there they were recruiting, amassing some huge army. It's all some sort of plan that's supposedly been years in the making. Again, I don't know why they're doing this. Frankly, I don't care," Ryo's expression was dark. "I came back to do what I could. You guys have more of a chance than I do at preventing this."</p><p>"And just how big is that chance?" Ruki asked, subdued.</p><p>"Tiny?" Ryo's chuckle bordered on fatalistic. "But mine's zero, so yours are better than nothing."</p><p>Jenrya was cradling his head in his hands, completely overwhelmed. An invasion? How could they expect to deal with something like that? Where would they even start, if anywhere at all? Three Tamers…no, two. Takato wasn't even here and neither was his infectious optimism. Two Tamers then, and Ryo, against what seemed like the weight of a whole <em>world</em>. This was too much. Jenrya couldn't help but have a difficult time trying to understand just what Ryo was saying – it was almost too ridiculous, too insane to be actually true.</p><p>"The thing is, they can't do much until this door is opened," Ryo continued, "There's some sort of 'weak' spot between the two Worlds. Obviously it hasn't been broken yet, otherwise we'd all be dead."</p><p>Renamon came up behind her Tamer, clapping a supportive paw on Ruki's shoulder. "What can we do?"</p><p>"Prevent the door – the weak spot - from being opened. It won't deteriorate any further, unless something disrupts it. I'm sure that whatever Digimon are here, they're working on doing just that. Thing is, I haven't the slightest clue how they're going to do this. Even though the door is relatively weak, it would still take a huge amount of energy to breach it. It's beyond me how they plan to collect that much, much less focus it at the door."</p><p>Terriermon joined them, button nose twitching as he raised a stubby paw. "Where <em>is </em>this door?"</p><p>"Tokyo is one of the most technologically advanced cities – where there is amassed technology, there is always a door. Tokyo's is the weakest for some reason. Digital pollution, too many people, who knows? I know for certain they won't even bother with the other doors. But the location of the door could be anywhere here, probably out of our reach."</p><p>Jenrya made a low, agonized sound at this. Terriermon comfortingly rubbed his partner's shoulder, his round face concerned.</p><p>"Besides, I don't think any of you could actually touch the door. It's not tangible. You can't see it, smell it. Sense it, maybe, but that's it. The door – weak spot, tear, bridge, whatever – isn't the issue. In fact, trying to tamper with it might make things even worse," Ryo gestured. "Whatever is collecting the energy. Whatever is going to use it to breach the door. Those would have to be artificial, man-made. And if they're in our World, they can be destroyed."</p><p>"So, by destroying those, we prevent the door from being opened," Renamon mused, her alien eyes narrowed in thought. "It's not quite so hopeless."</p><p>"How do we find out how they're collecting energy? And where? By then, it might be too late. My guess is the process of getting the pathway between the Digital World and Real World fully open isn't gonna be a one-second shot. It might be gradual, maybe take a few hours at worst. The energy they use on the door couldn't be just one quick burst – it would just seal itself up. Doors all over the world do that all the time. It would have to be a steady stream," Ryo said. "But that's my take on it, based it from what I learned years ago. But I think it's pretty damn close to what could happen. What <em>is </em>going to happen," he corrected himself with total conviction.</p><p>Jenrya sighed and rubbed in exhaustion at his eyes, miserable. Ryo fell silent, the dark shadows under his eyes even more apparent in the red light of the tunnel. Ruki stared at her hands, her fingers twisting nervously.</p><p>Jenrya couldn't believe this. <em>This's impossible</em>. There was a goal, a definite one, from what Ryo described. But there was so much room for error. How could they even hope to accomplish this? Destroying whatever the energy-collecting device was wouldn't be a problem – Renamon and Terriermon could probably handle that – but there was the matter of finding it first. It was in Tokyo, it had to be. But…where? It would be impossible to search all of Shinjuku in time, much less the entire city. The chances were, as Ryo just said, tiny.</p><p><em>Just what </em>can<em> we do? </em></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki found sunsets grating.</p><p>He wasn't late. Nothing to worry about. For some unexplained reason, he'd been checking his watch all night, as if waiting for something to delay him. Tonight was surprisingly stress-free. The repairs went well and he reworked his calculations: it looked like Hypnos would be online a day or so earlier than originally projected. Kincaid had wandered off, taking that sickeningly enthusiastic, bubbly air with her. The damage from the mass power outage could be reasonably contained.</p><p>Yamaki was surprised to find he was actually in a good mood.</p><p>He side-stepped the uniformed workers refitting the bulbs in the storefronts. This part of Shinjuku was almost done and while they had been working around the clock, the damage was still there.</p><p>It was a small restaurant, nothing overly fancy. After Reika left his office, he ran over his conversation with her. Reviewing it again, he was startled to realize that what he proposed to her sounded very much like an invitation to a date.</p><p>Reika was already there, sitting at one of the low tables in the back. Looking in from the front window, it was obvious she hadn't been there very long, her coat draped over the back of a free chair and they hadn't yet started hounding her about coffee. She was looking at something he couldn't see from his angle, her head tilted to the side slightly in an unconsciously graceful gesture. Yamaki suffered a sense of dizzying vertigo. He steadied himself, startled. There was something altogether too familiar about this scene.</p><p>Thinking about it further, still watching Reika from outside, Yamaki realized what it was was: he had met Yayoi just like this. Different restaurant, true, but...</p><p>
  <em> Good thing I have no intention of making that mistake again.</em>
</p><p>Reika turned as the door gave a musical chime to announce a new arrival. Her boss stepped in, his hair gleaming gold in the overhead lights. He made his way over, winding through the maze of tables, and sitting down across from her. Yamaki made no attempts to remove his ever-present sunglasses: he was silent, waiting. Always all business.</p><p>"Almost thought you were going to be a no show," Reika said, accepting the menu that materialized with the waiter.</p><p>"I keep my word."</p><p>Reika laced her fingers together and tilted her head, her lips drawn together. "I already explained how I felt. Did you have enough time to think about it?"</p><p>There was the ghost of a smile on Yamaki's lips. His voice was almost wry.</p><p>"Enough. More time would've been better.."</p><p>"Only there's never enough time," Reika finished quietly.</p><p>"Exactly." The conversation bordered on territory Yamaki didn't much care to think about. Accepting the cup of coffee the waiter discreetly offered, he took a sip. "I would personally prefer it if we kept the arrangement, although it's understandable where you're coming from."</p><p>Reika stared, taken aback. Clearly this wasn't what she was expecting.</p><p>"That is, if you want –" Yamaki cut himself off, tilting his head at some nearly inaudible sound.</p><p>A few seconds passed before Reika's less acute hearing picked up what her boss already noticed. A strange, eerie humming, reverberating across the walls and glass. The pitch rose and then fell, a mixture between the song of a dying animal and what sounded almost like the faintest of human whispers. Standing up, Yamaki cautiously rounded the tables, Reika following. The staff from the restaurant and the few customers began approaching the restaurant front, having just heard the bizarre humming. Yamaki reached it first, with Reika behind him.</p><p>What Yamaki saw sucked his breath away.</p><p>A river of lights.</p><p>He had to remind himself to breathe. Yamaki knew he shouldn't be surprised (he had, after all, seen stranger things), but the fact there was a glowing, thick thread of energy in the night sky wasn't exactly something he expected to see tonight. His eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses. It wasn't a solid stream – the sheer number of individual balls of light and the intensity of their glow only made it look like it was. Somewhere beyond the buildings of the street, more joined the river in the sky.</p><p><em> Whatever the hell that thing is, it's going somewhere</em>. Yamaki didn't like this. He didn't trust it. It just wasn't in his nature to. Behind him, a crowd of cooks, waiters and customers gathered, staring in open shock at the sight. Next to him, Reika stared stonily at the gleaming white river, than at her boss. Waiting. Knowing that look on his face. Back to work, it seemed.</p><p>"Let's go. I want to see where this damned thing goes."</p><p>Reika nodded and, gathering her coat, followed Yamaki outside the restaurant. Whatever he was about to say earlier could wait.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The Juggernaut switched monitors, flipping through hundreds of thousands of individual units in a matter of milliseconds. Nothing of importance. Impressive the Creator managed to call in so many Golems – the humans were too startled to panic just yet. A few might escape, but the Juggernaut could eliminate them if there were any signs they would try to warn the rest of the world. Dispose of the bodies if necessary, but it calculated it wouldn't need to. By the time thousands at a time tried to flee, it wouldn't matter. The Shield would be in place. And that would be that. It could feed on the humans at its own pace.</p><p>As the Juggernaut continued to upload the now-steady flow of data (<em>souls?</em>), the merged computer began to undergo a minor internal change. It was to be expected, of course. In order for it to function even more efficiently, the human's "Will" had to be coaxed from the rest of its general makeup. It had been dormant since the merge, slowly repairing itself as the huge machine went through its tasks.</p><p>
  <em>…?</em>
</p><p>The Juggernaut, noticing two of the harbor guards wandering closer to the Shield, took action. Thick, pulsing cables burst loose from the walls. They quickly wrapped around the surprised humans, forced them mercilessly into the dark waters. Their struggles were weak and they soon expired from lack of oxygen. That seen to, the Juggernaut went back to monitoring the area, apathetic.</p><p>The groggy Will was more insistent this time.</p><p>
  <em> ….?!</em>
</p><p>Another Golem went into the pool and dissolved. More energy stored. Routine. <strong>Your purpose will come soon. </strong></p><p>
  <em>What are we waiting for? </em>
</p><p>Inside the Juggernaut, the small boy's frail body remained motionless.</p><p>
  <strong> When the time is right. When there is enough to complete our task. </strong>
</p><p>The emerging Will was bewildered and for a moment, it instinctively sought to resurface. To remove the parts of the Juggernaut inserted in Takato's (<em>his</em>) being. It/he was easily pushed back. <strong>No. Unity. We are one. The only reason you are permitted to function with relative independence is because of the purpose you serve. Faulty programs failing to obey this purpose will be expelled.</strong></p><p><em> I don't understand.</em> Although Takato Matsuda himself was unaware of anything around him, the tiny conscious part – his Will – was suddenly terrified, and quaked at the mild threat. <em>Don't expel. Don't expel.<br/></em></p><p>
  <strong> Cooperate and expulsion will not be necessary. </strong>
</p><p>A pause. And then meek submission.</p><p>The Juggernaut continued with its tasks. One part of it scanned the human boy. Perfectly healthy, as expected. So the only part of the human boy capable of any independent thought (if it could be called that) was Takato Matsuda's Will. It/he could be pointed in the correct direction. Since the Creator recently gave new data to the supercomputer, it knew what would have to be done now. See to it that enough time was bought so Zudomon could set up his forge and create the Shield. After that, it was probable the Juggernaut would take on the duties of the Sword. And that was where Takato Matsuda's Will came in.</p><p>Guilmon. <em>You want Guilmon?</em></p><p>
  <strong>I need him.</strong>
</p><p><em> You're…not going to hurt him, are you? </em>Jenrya wouldn't, surely.</p><p>
  <strong>We each have our duties. I will follow my programming. And so will you. Questions serve no purpose. </strong>
</p><p>The Juggernaut deleted another Golem and absorbed it, swelling with the sparks of energy spreading in the glowing pool. It almost made the two light-headed with the new surge of power. Another life, gone. Another soul, another human being. Gone. Memories of a grandson, a huge fight with a spouse, a funeral. And then nothing more.</p><p>It was…sad. Almost. The Juggernaut itself was incapable of true emotions – it could emulate them if it felt a reason to – but there was a strange sensation that was slightly upsetting to the core of the machine. Probably an aftereffect of the merge between the original Juggernaut and Takato Matsuda. By bonding, and eventually coming together into one, they had, in an inaccurate way of speaking, blurred together and overlapped. It could explain the alien sensation the Juggernaut supposed could be an "emotion".</p><p>The inorganic part of the Juggernaut wasn't concerned. It could still easily override the inferior part if it became necessary. Although it meant certain options could not be used – Takato's Digimon, for example – it could still accomplish the given tasks. But it would be less efficient. It wouldn't be difficult to control the inferior's Will. Directed at the Digivice sitting on an unresponsive lap, the Will could be focused.</p><p>And then Takato Matsuda's Digimon would evolve into a better weapon, another tool for the Juggernaut to use.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ryo returned home as fast as possible.</p><p><em> I did what I could.</em> He told himself as he headed toward the apartment complex, picking his way through the darkness. In this part of the city, they hadn't gotten to fixing the lights yet. Ryo was positive he had seen the lights in the sky. The eerie humming was way too familiar. Glancing over his shoulder, back the way he came, he could still see the glow from the stream, fainter now than before. Whatever those balls of light were, they were decreasing in numbers. For now.</p><p>Shaking his head, Ryo let himself into the apartment, shoving the quietly jingling keys into his pocket as he mounted the stairs. Feeling blindly for the banister, he made his way up to the second floor. You couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor kids. Caught up in something that just was too big. Jenrya, Ruki, their missing friend. Despite the differences, they were still kids. Ryo knew <em>he</em> wasn't. He was no longer an innocent, he was no longer a kid, despite whatever physical age he might appear to be. <em>All those years in the Digital World…and only one passed here</em>. It felt like he'd been somehow cheated by time. It wasn't fair. But then again, when were things ever fair?</p><p>Sometimes Ryo was convinced those long years were a dream. A never-ending nightmare. But he only had to look at his scars to see it had been all too real. He lost his childhood because he made one stupid, impulsive choice. And, looking at Jenrya, at Ruki, at the kids at school, he regretted it now more than ever.</p><p>Still contemplating this, Ryo reached the second floor of the apartment complex. Looked like the emergency lights were, the dim weak glow visible across the hall. He took a few steps, and paused. Silent. Normally you could hear people doing their laundry, cooking dinner, watching TV or just listening to music. But now there was nothing. Only a low humming…</p><p>Crap.</p><p>Cold realization broke in a wave. Those weren't emergency lights – those things from outside were in here! Ryo's first reaction was to turn on his heel and leave the building. The deathly silence wasn't a good sign and he didn't relish sticking around and finding out how close the source of the humming was. A sudden thought made him pause. Tamayo. She would've gotten back from work and been home by now. Without thinking, Ryo sprinted down the hall, barely stopping as he rounded a corner, skidded slightly, and raced toward their apartment.</p><p>The door was ajar.</p><p>The humming approached from his left. They were definitely heading for <em>something</em>. Ryo entered the living room and took it in quickly. Some of the furniture was overturned in the living room, as if someone went scrambling over them. A package of strawberries lay on the counter, spilling out into the juice that had splattered everywhere when a glass pitcher was suddenly dropped. Faintly, he could make out the dark droplets of what looked like blood, leading away from the small kitchen. Now his heart leaped into his throat. He threw caution to the wind:</p><p>"Tamayo!" Ryo headed down the hall and glanced in his room, then in Tamayo's abandoned one. "<em>Tamayo</em>!"</p><p>He tilted his head and listened, unfamiliar worry taking root. Was she even here still? Someone was . The blood was proof of that. Concern for himself had somehow vanished, now replaced with a growing nausea. Following the drops of red on the carpet and stepping over the shattered glass from a fallen picture frame, Ryo bit his lip. What if – no. She wasn't dead. Couldn't be.</p><p>He was about to call again when he heard something that made him stop in his tracks. Ryo paused, straining. There it was again, a muffled sound from the bathroom. <em>Crying?</em> Pressing his ear to the door, he listened. Yeah, someone was crying. He tested the doorknob. It rattled: locked. The crying stopped.</p><p>"Tamayo, is that you?"</p><p>He nearly sat down in relief as her voice neared the bathroom door. "Ryo?"</p><p>"Yeah. Are you okay?" Ryo demanded. The humming wasn't coming any closer, but it wasn't going away either.</p><p>"Y-yeah," the woman on the other side sniffled. There was a click as she shakily undid the bolt. "Are you?"</p><p>"I'm fine," he said as he pushed open the door. Peering into the darkness of the bathroom, he could make out the shape of Tamayo huddled near the sink. She got to her feet at the sight of him, swaying on weak legs and almost tumbling to the floor as she approached, her eyes wide as she checked her charge over. Once she confirmed Ryo was in one piece, she leaned heavily against the tiled counter and wiped at her red eyes.</p><p>Ryo watched her for a moment. Her dark green hair had worked its way out of their customary braids, now loose in clumps. Involuntary tears ran down her cheeks, blurring the little makeup she normally wore. Other than that, she didn't look hurt, just scared out of her mind. <em>She's seen these things</em>.</p><p>Taking a deep breath and trying to calm frayed nerves without much success, Tamayo ran a hand through her tangled green hair. At first Ryo didn't say anything. Several agonizing seconds passed before he finally spoke up.</p><p>"What happened?"</p><p>Tamayo sighed, drained. "I-I don't really know. These…"</p><p>"What?" Ryo asked.</p><p>"I don't <em>know</em> what!" Tamayo snapped and then instantly apologized, her face flushing. "I…I'm sorry. It's just…I don't know what they were. They were like…ghosts."</p><p>Ghosts. What did he know of that acted like ghosts? As far as he knew, there wasn't any such thing in either the Real World or the Digital World. But…there were those that could put on the appearances of one. He was about to ask his guardian to describe the "ghosts" in more detail when he suddenly noticed her eyes were no longer on him.</p><p>The young woman, frozen, stared past him, her eyes wide. Ryo whipped around.</p><p>The metal forehead of a white horse poked through the locked door, looking like a freaky mounted trophy. Red armor covering the creature's eyes turned slowly, taking in the room. Ryo tensed as the Unimon's head lifted through the door, taking a soundless step forward through the wood. Tamayo pressed herself against the counter, instinctively scrabbling up onto it, her voice catching in her throat as Ryo instinctively moved to place himself between the Unimon and his guardian.</p><p>Ryo thought quickly, his mind racing: what did he know about Unimon? Enough to know he stood no chance up against one. But they shouldn't be able to go through solids like that. It took a step, lifting its head as pulled itself further. He had no weapons. His D-Arc was still recharging. Screwed was one way of putting it.</p><p>The Unimon started to take another step forward, standing at its full height. Behind Ryo, Tamayo made a horrified squeak of terror – something swung on its hinges and there was a flash as the bathroom light reflected off something. The Unimon froze as the light from behind Ryo flashed over it.</p><p>Without so much as a sound, the Unimon burst into data particles.</p><p>Ryo stared. Just what the hell happened? Cautiously, he watched the data particles fade away – whatever the Unimon was, it hadn't been a real Digimon. Real ones had more data in them than that, didn't vanish just like that. Satisfied that the Unimon was dead/deleted/gone, he turned to see just what caused the flash, silently thanking whatever luck he still had.</p><p>Tamayo, in her panic, had bumped into the medicine cabinet's mirror. The Unimon stared the reflected light right in the face before it dissolved away.</p><p>Ryo was beginning to realize what they were up against. Digimon-that-weren't. They only appeared like real Digimon, but they were shells. Mindless drones. He remembered seeing them in the Digital World. As far as he knew, the drones (no, the official term was "Golems", he remembered now being told that with a rumble of disdain), had little defenses. Any Digimon could take care of them. And somehow they were affected by anything magnetic – but that was in the Digital World. Maybe the rules changed here.</p><p><em> I don't really care </em>what<em> the differences are between this and the Digital World.</em> Ryo bit his lip. His mind raced. So it was basically anything magnetic then. But they were around that sort of stuff here and there was no effect. From the reaction from the Unimon-Golem, mirrors had about the same effect. And that was really all he needed to know. The technical stuff didn't matter.</p><p>He managed to calm Tamayo down in the meantime, taking her hand and helping her off the counter. She wobbled, but stayed standing.</p><p>"We're gonna get out of here," he started, listening. The humming grew closer, louder than ever. He didn't have much time. "We'll try to get out through the fire escape. Understand?"</p><p>Tamayo nodded shakily. She still held his hand in a death-grip.</p><p>"Okay. Do you have any mirrors I can carry? Something hand-held?"</p><p>She directed him to one of the drawers near the sink. Rooting through it, he located a small compact and a larger frameless one, still covered with a fine layer of dust. Apparently Tamayo intended to have it framed and mounted, but never got to it. Careful to avoid slicing his fingers on it, he opened the compact and handed to her, hoping his theory was correct and this would work. If not, if somehow he was wrong…well, he guessed they were good as dead.</p><p>Taking her free hand, he rushed out of the bathroom with Tamayo in tow. The fire escape was out in the hall, beyond their apartment, only meters away from their end of the complex. It wasn't far. Moving about in the darkness of the living room, he made his way cautiously into the kitchen The humming was close, much closer than before; it was difficult to pinpoint a location because it sounded like it was closing in from all sides. All the more reason to hurry.</p><p>They crossed the kitchen floor. Ryo reached for the door -</p><p>Just as the ghostly head of another Golem appeared.</p><p>The gray, flat face passed right through his fist. For a second, he felt like he plunged his hand in a vat of liquid nitrogen. It went painfully numb at the contact and he jerked away from the door, trying to shake some life back into his fingers. Tamayo clutched onto his other hand, biting down an instinctive scream at the sight of the heavily furred Gorillamon-Golem.</p><p>Behind him, Tamayo stumbled, but regained her balance as Ryo backed the two of them away. Another Golem joined the large face of the Gorillamon. Ryo glanced sharply about as he caught movement from the corners of his eyes – they were surrounded as dozens of other species began to come in through the walls.</p><p><em> Shit</em>. Surrounded like this, he couldn't hope for the mirrors to take care of all of them - if what that one, quick touch had done to his hand was any sign, they couldn't risk something as stupid as trying to charge past. The two humans were forced to back across the living room as the Golems closed in, the window behind them.</p><p>Ryo thought quickly. Glancing behind him, he could see the window. Their apartment was on the second floor <em>So long as we don't land on our heads, we'll survive.</em> One of the Golems darted forward, the claws of the Betamon scrabbling for Tamayo; Ryo jerked her roughly away, fingers so tight around her they were white. The half-circle of the Golems throbbed, the creatures swarming.</p><p>His dead arm still hanging uselessly at his side – feeling was just starting to return to it – Ryo grabbed the heaviest object he saw. The metal paperweight smashed through the window pane. Glass sparkled out into the night sky. The paperweight hadn't been heavy enough to break the entire window – it had been weakened, but the hole was only a foot or so across. Good enough. Tamayo barely had enough time to make a surprised noise as he charged recklessly at the window, pulling her with him.</p><p>There was a brief second of sharp pain as he felt the window give way against his body. Glass shards exploded everywhere, small pieces cutting at his skin. Shimmering powder sprayed after him. For a long moment, he felt the sickening weightlessness of free-fall as he and Tamayo plummeted toward the patch of thick grass below. Suddenly it was close – too close – and with a dull thud, he hit the ground hard, and rolled, winded. Stars swirled. Disoriented, he was surprised to find, aside from a few cuts and bruises, he was okay.</p><p>A small voice wondered how this was possible. He ignored it.</p><p>Ryo staggered to his feet, blood sliding down his cheek from a cut above his eyebrow. A few feet away, Tamayo sprawled awkwardly, staring forward in a daze. Her face was starting to twist in pain despite her shock – approaching his guardian, Ryo could see her leg twisted at an unnatural angle. Unlike Ryo, Tamayo hadn't been so lucky.</p><p>Glancing up, he knew the Golems wouldn't wait there forever. Eventually they would have to realize the humans ran away. There wasn't much time. Turning back to Tamayo, he quickly checked her leg. Definitely broken. Ryo managed to loop one of Tamayo's limp arms over his shoulder, staggering under her heavier weight. Gritting his teeth, he glanced up again.</p><p>None of the Golems were drifting down yet to investigate. He wasn't going to wait around until they finally got it through their brains. There was no time to waste.</p><p>Shifting under Tamayo, Ryo set off as fast as he could.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki followed the river of lights, driving haphazardly through the half-lit streets. Reika, sitting in the passenger, glanced over at her boss. Yamaki's face was set. She knew that look – it was always the same on every hunt. Whatever he tried to say back in the restaurant was forgotten. There was really no question of what was more important, after all.</p><p>The river of light in the night sky had been steadily dimming, which meant if Yamaki didn't punch it into gear, he'd risk losing it. This had to be linked to all the bizarre activity earlier. If it was, it meant Yamaki might finally make some headway. He wasn't going to lose that chance. Through the dark lens of his sunglasses, he tracked the stream of strange lights. They were definitely heading somewhere. Deeper into the city.</p><p>In a direction that was far too familiar.</p><p>He could see the familiar double towers of Hypnos's headquarters, jutting up into the night sky and standing in stark contrast to the glowing ribbon circling about the two towers. The humming was still audible, despite the fact the light ascended thousands of feet into the air, a shimmering thread instead of the river from before. They were disappearing into the skyscraper, spiraling down in gleaming ribbons.</p><p>There was something in there.</p><p>Something going on behind his back. <em>Someone</em> was undermining him; there was no possible way that something like this could've escaped his notice any other way. He'd personally see to flushing out the rat, and finding whatever drew the lights. Whatever it was, it was better off destroyed.</p><p>He slammed on the brakes as he rounded the corner. A roadblock was set-up, the flames from the dozens of sputtering red flares reflecting off the makeshift barrier of black vans blocking the street. Pulling to a stop, Yamaki got out of his car. These vans didn't belong to him: they had no markings at all. No insignias, no license plates, blackened windows. A few armored figures strolled about the blockade and he caught the glimpse of weapons, of semi-automatics. They meant business.</p><p><em> Who </em>are<em> these people?</em></p><p>Leaving the car, Yamaki strode toward the blockade, Reika following. One of the helmeted soldiers, speaking to someone, turned at his approach. Behind his shades, Yamaki's eyes narrowed as he caught sight of the man the soldier had been talking to. The same deceivingly harmless expression, the same black suit. The same face he instinctively despised without really knowing why. Ataru Nagamora. Yamaki marched up to Nagamora.</p><p>"What the hell is this?" Yamaki hissed.</p><p>Nagamora waved the soldier away. "Precautions. I had the area quarantined off."</p><p>"Why didn't I have a say in this?"</p><p>The other man, unfazed at the venom in Yamaki's words, began to clean his glasses.</p><p>"This's my jurisdiction, Nagamora!"</p><p>"You forget I also have an interest in this," Nagamora said calmly, replacing his glasses. "We don't know for sure what this phenomenon is, which is why I want my people on this as insurance. Unless there is a direct connection to your field, I don't want your manpower wasted on it."</p><p>That answer wasn't good enough. Too many holes, too much left unexplained. Reika glanced at her boss and bit her lip. He looked ready to explode, hands clenched together into fists. He wasn't the type to be satisfied by that answer. Reika watched the growing argument with quiet interest, eyeing the other man. She heard of Nagamora, but she rarely saw him, much less this close. The fine hairs on the back of her neck rose, almost instinctively. He looked so normal, so average, that he almost seemed out of place somehow.</p><p>"My manpower doesn't matter. That," Yamaki stabbed a finger angrily at the twin towers, at the thread of light starting to dwindle, "is under <em>my</em> personal care! If there is anything out of the ordinary involved with <em>that</em> building, I have every right to investigate it with my own personnel."</p><p>Nagamora shook his head.</p><p>"Sorry, but I can't take that chance. I'm afraid I can't permit you to enter until my men finish their search."</p><p>Yamaki seethed. Was his control that meaningless? He managed to prevent himself from doing anything drastic, closing his eyes behind his sunglasses and counting to five. This was ridiculous, beyond insane! If somehow Hypnos had something to do with the river of lights, he had every right to know, to conduct his own investigation. <em>How can I be barred from my own goddamn headquarters?</em> He was the leader of Hypnos! This couldn't be happening.</p><p>But it was. And he was starting to get suspicious.</p><p>Nagamora was still talking, but he only listened with half an ear, watching as the light faded and altogether vanished into the enormous building. The sky returned to normal.</p><p>" – final inspection. If everything passes, then we'll remove the quarantine."</p><p>Yamaki's voice was low, a dangerous growl. He was starting to get sick of these stupid little games.</p><p>"It better be removed. Because Hypnos <em>must</em> function and it can't without access to the equipment. Without us, those damned creatures will overwhelm this city," Yamaki said. "We can't afford any more of these delays."</p><p>Nagamora turned and shouted orders to a squad of the armed soldiers. When he turned back to Yamaki, his expression was unreadable. He adjusted his glasses, mouth a thin line as he regarded the younger man. It didn't look like Yamaki would be willing to bend over this time – he was set to continue regardless of what Nagamora advised him. Which wasn't a good idea, since it halved Yamaki's usefulness. A shame, really. Especially since he surpassed Nagamora's initial expectations ever since he'd introduced himself officially to Yamaki all those years ago at the hospital. Oh well.</p><p>"I'm sorry," Nagamora repeated. He had one last chance to reconsider before Nagamora would take action against him. "But this isn't intentional, if that's what you're getting at. I would advise against conflicting with the quarantine."</p><p>One last chance before Yamaki would wear out his usefulness.</p><p>"Maybe I want to personally find out what happened, not get force-fed a report after the fact," Yamaki glowered. "If you actually start using those weapons on my people, I'll have your operation blown."</p><p>The two men fell silent, sizing each other up. Yamaki did have that power – he could find resources somewhere else because like it or not, he did have some <em>other</em> friends in high places, and he had dug up enough facts that could have officials scrabbling to help him. Very well. By this time, they could run things well enough without Yamaki at the helm. It was only a matter to seeing him removed. Now was not the time, obviously. Too many witnesses. But it would have to be soon. A mental note to see that Yamaki would be dealt with, preferably within the week. Nagamora's expression didn't change.</p><p>"I assure you, that won't be necessary."</p><p>Yamaki stared at Nagamora for a long moment. His expression remained unreadable. Giving the vans and the soldiers a disgusted look, Yamaki turned on his heel and stalked away, Reika glancing over her shoulder.</p><p>Nagamora was still watching them even as they left.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Tamayo wasn't getting any lighter.</p><p>Grunting, Ryo shifted his grip. Tamayo stumbled, moving in a daze and nearly sent the two of them sprawling to the sidewalk. The moan she gave was pitiful. Her face had paled considerably since their flight from the apartment – he'd been in such a hurry to get away he hadn't seen to her broken leg. <em>You can survive a broken leg</em>, Ryo's face, set, didn't betray any of his thoughts. Feeling finally returned to the hand that touched the Golem earlier. He didn't even want to think what might've happened back there. Half dragging, half-carrying his guardian, he looked around for anyone who could help him.</p><p>At this time, there was no one. Glancing over his shoulder, Ryo could see the faint glow from their apartment. The creatures were still there. Going back wasn't an option. But staying out here in the open, broadcasting their presence, wasn't either. If it wasn't the Golems, it could be that thing that tried to kill him earlier.</p><p>There was one last option.</p><p>
  <em> I didn't want to get her involved in this…</em>
</p><p>He had no choice though.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya couldn't concentrate. Lying on the length of the couch, his arms crossed behind his head, he stared up at the ceiling. <em>This is too big for us. </em>How could they expect to "save the world"? Just like something about of a bad movie, a bad book. It wasn't possible. Too big. Too impossible.</p><p>
  <em>But why would Ryo try to warn us if it was hopeless?</em>
</p><p>Exactly.</p><p>He'd tried watching TV, reading a book, doing his homework even. But Ryo's words kept coming back. Thinking back to what he said, Jenrya found he couldn't concentrate on math when those words echoed. The solutions to equations slipped through like it didn't matter. Meaningless. Staring blankly at the homework, Jenrya felt his teeth grinding together. This just didn't feel important. Not when it felt like…like their days were numbered. Like time was limited. Looking at it that way, solving math equations suddenly seemed a waste of time.</p><p>Jenrya turned on the couch and sat up, elbows resting on his knees.</p><p>
  <em> But what could we do?</em>
</p><p>Not much. What Ryo described sounded inevitable.</p><p>A series of sharp knocks startled him back to the present. Whoever it was, they were hammering on the door. Jenrya looked up sharply. A visitor? <em>Now?</em> He pushed away from the couch and shuffled toward the door. It was late, past midnight. His parents were gone – Dad had been called to work (he'd left grumbling about OT) and his mother was off to visit her sister for the next couple of days. Which basically left Jenrya to himself. As far as he knew, no one was supposed to be over. Warily he approached the door and slowly opened it.</p><p>And stumbled backward in surprise.</p><p>"Help me!"</p><p>Jenrya could only stare, gaping. Ryo stood there, looking haggard and the worse for wear, clumps of grass blades clinging to his spiked hair and a streak of blood trickling his cheek. But that wasn't what made Jenrya freeze. It was what Ryo was doing: the taller boy was struggling under the weight of a woman in her twenties. Ryo staggered under her, starting to sink under the dead weight. He repeated himself sharply before Jenrya shook off his surprise and hurried over.</p><p>Between the two of them, they managed to get the woman into the living room and onto the couch. Ryo made sure she was as comfortable as possible. Listening to the ragged breaths, Jenrya frowned. Whoever she was, she looked like she was in bad shape, covered in grass, dark tracks from mascara running down her flushed face. He didn't even see the strange angle of her leg until Ryo knelt down and began looking at it. Jenrya looked away, feeling sick at the sight of the unnatural bulge. Ryo got up, wiping the drying blood from a cut on his forehead.</p><p>"I need to get her to a hospital. At least do something about the leg."</p><p>Jenrya looked up at the other boy, who was rubbing absently at his bleeding cut.</p><p>"Ryo, what's going on?"</p><p>"We were attacked," he said, his hand coming away with blood flakes. "By Golems. Explain to you about them later since you probably haven't encountered them yet. And we look like crap because we jumped out a two-story window. She broke her leg on the way down."</p><p>Jenrya gaped at him. Jumped out…a two-story window? That was something out of movies, manga! But Ryo's expression was dead serious. He wasn't kidding. Ryo hadn't much in the way with humor, unless it was the morbid sort and Jenrya knew he hadn't changed suddenly. But still. A jump like <em>that</em>. Crazy. But it did explain the broken leg. It didn't, however, explain how Ryo came out looking better than her.</p><p>Jenrya said as much, looking worriedly over at the strange woman. To put it in Ryo's words, she definitely looked like crap.</p><p>"I don't know. Luck, I guess," Ryo shrugged. He'd practically landed on his head, now that he pieced together the fall. It didn't really make that much sense now that he thought about it. "Maybe I'm just hard to kill."</p><p>"Who's she?"</p><p>"Tamayo. My assigned…guardian. I live with her."</p><p>Jenrya rubbed at his temples. He didn't know the first thing about first aid. Personally, he wouldn't trust himself to touch that leg. "We've got to get her to a hospital. Her leg –"</p><p>" - Broken."</p><p>" – I <em>know</em>. I've got eyes," Jenrya spat out before he was aware he'd said anything. His exhaustion and worry really weren't mixing well. "My mom's out for a few days. But I think my dad's coming back in the morning. He could drive us."</p><p>"That's assuming the nearest hospital recovered from that blackout."</p><p><em>Do you have to be so pessimistic?</em> "If they aren't, then we can't do anything."</p><p>Ryo walked over to the kitchen as he spoke. He stopped at the sink and turned the faucet, running his hand through the icy water. Splashing his face and cleaning the scrapes and cuts, he wet his whole head before helping himself to one of the clean towels on a nearby rack. Jenrya said nothing in protest and stepped back as he touched the moist towel to Tamayo's pale forehead. It didn't do anything to help her leg, but it apparently made Ryo feel like he was doing something.</p><p>Ryo sat down heavily on another chair, peering through wet bangs at his hands. "God."</p><p>Jenrya pulled up a chair, glancing first at Ryo's companion. She had somehow fallen asleep, dozing uncomfortably.</p><p>"I seriously didn't think they'd be that desperate to bring <em>them</em> into this."</p><p>Jenrya frowned. "Who's 'them'?"</p><p>"The Golems. They're like rejects from the freak-farm. The menial laborers of the Digital World. They're virtually harmless to any Digimon. Too stupid to revolt against their masters. And far too weak to be any threat," Ryo snorted. He smoothed back his wet hair. Rubbed at his face. "You could sneeze on them and they just puff out. Like that. <em>Poof</em>."</p><p>Jenrya hadn't known any of this. Terriermon never told him. Never told him that even in the Digital World, there were forms of enslavement. This didn't seem to bother Ryo – he saw this as a fact, nothing of importance. It bothered Jenrya. How could someone become so desensitized? His mouth pursed.</p><p>Ryo continued. "In the Digital World, they weren't much of a problem. I was the only human, as far as I knew. I never got attacked by a Golem, although I was taught how to defend myself against one," he skirted the topic of the Digital World. "But they can be dangerous. I got tagged by one for a second and my arm just went dead on me. Like it'd been sucked dry."</p><p>"I thought you said they weren't dangerous."</p><p>"They aren't if you've got a defense. And I don't anymore. There were too many and I blew the charge on my D-Arc. We had to run. It was a good thing they're too stupid to follow us."</p><p>Jenrya asked Ryo to describe them, what happened before. Ryo kept it brief and to the point, detailing the lights, Tamayo, the jump from her apartment and breaking her leg. Yeah, it sucked she got hurt, Ryo said, but the fact was, better injured than dead. And that was what would've happened if they stayed. Beat being sucked dry like a damn sponge.</p><p>"They're going all out if they bother to send Golems over. They're not keeping much of a low profile anymore – not with the big pretty light show in the sky," Ryo commented dryly. "Means they don't care as much as before. Probably closer to their goal."</p><p>"Don't remind me," Jenrya groaned.</p><p>"Yeah, it blows."</p><p>A silence as the two boys avoided each other's eyes.</p><p>"I still don't get what they're doing fooling around with Golems," Ryo went on. "They can't do anything so they're useless. Human weapons could easily knock them out. I don't get why they're bothering with them."</p><p>Jenrya turned this new concept over. So Golems were basically a lower form of life than Digimon? Nope, Ryo said. Not even that close. As far as he knew, they only looked like Digimon. That was where the similarities ended. Just data. No intelligence. No personality. No will. The perfect slaves.</p><p>"Maybe they have some use I don't know about. I never really bothered with them before."</p><p>Ryo covered the beginnings of a contagious yawn. Jenrya fought his own down. One of them would have to be awake in case the "Golems" came back (Ryo highly doubted it, because of Jenrya being here) or if whatever attacked Ryo a few days ago showed up. With a silent sigh, Jenrya steeled himself for an all-nighter. He'd be the one to do it. There weren't any free rooms beside his own. He started to offer but Ryo shook his head, tired.</p><p>"I'd rather stay right here."</p><p>"Are you sure?"</p><p>"Yeah. Easier to watch Tamayo."</p><p>Jenrya made himself useful, glad for a distraction. Retrieving an extra blanket and pillow from the hall closet, he offered them to Ryo. He accepted them and stretched out on the loveseat he'd been sitting near, lanky legs hanging over the side. He visibly relaxed, the adrenaline from earlier flooding away. He dozed off uneasily within minutes of lying down.</p><p>Jenrya settled down in the opposite chair. It was going to be a long night.</p><p>
  <strong>To be continued…</strong>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
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  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Dreamer</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Takato dreams of the Juggernaut and Jenrya discovers a little bit more about Ryo, offering to talk if he wants to.</p><p>Impmon drops in on Renamon with some surprising news.</p><p>And Guilmon is forced into a dark digivolution by his corrupted Tamer, under the Juggernaut's cold "hand".</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <strong>(Dreamer)</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>The Will was… "dreaming".</p><p>
  <em> There was a time when things were different. He couldn't place when. "When" didn't exist – it was a fantasy. It meant nothing, but it was still alluring, glittering at the edges of whatever remained of a fragmented memory. Reality had long since blurred at the edges and he honestly couldn't say where he ended and the "other" began.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The "other" was a strange, alien being that somehow reminded Takato of himself. And, of course, of Jenrya. Because that was the "other's" true form. But there was a little bit of himself, a strange bit that wasn't fractured, wasn't imperfect. He was an outsider to this perfect "other", this weird blend of Jenrya and Takato. The "other" knew of this little hiding spot, where the last remnants of Takato's personality resided. He knew and let Takato stay. Out of pity? Maybe. It wasn't up to Takato to judge Jenrya, to presume to second-guess him. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> There was a little bit of himself still left, somehow, untouched by Jenrya. Broken still, yes, but still pure</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Within this, he managed to create the little hide-away. Just a white room with no visible exits. Takato sat in the center of the floor, hugging his thin knees to his chest. The longer he was here, the more solid he seemed to become. Like the broken parts trying to reform, trying to find his center once more and not quite succeeding. His dull red eyes stared blankly at a spotless wall. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya, the "other", came and went. Takato could feel his lifeless gray eyes on him every time he came. Walls didn't stop him. Usually Jenrya would stare for a few moments, and, satisfied with something, then leave. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya had scared him. He hadn't surely meant it though, when Jenrya had told him that he could leave him behind, "expel" him. The thought of being fully alone, without the "other" wandering in and out, was unbearable. Takato wanted to be held, be comforted like last time, when Jenrya talked to him and asked him questions. But "last time" seemed so far away too, although it had to have been recent. No clock, no time. No sense of the passing of the days and the nights. He was immune to time like Jenrya, but he hadn't known it would be like this, so lonely…Takato might be broken still, but that didn't mean he was unable to understand loneliness.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> It was then that he became aware of the fact that he wasn't alone. Jenrya was back.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Takato was afraid. There was the fear that if he dared to speak up, he would be left behind, left completely alone.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But instead of leaving, like usual, Jenrya walked over and rested a cold hand on his shoulder. Takato jumped, shoulder tensing in fear. Was he here to tell him he had to go? To lock the invisible doors against him?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> No. You still have a use. As long as a program has a use and its functions outweigh its weaknesses, there is no point in expelling it. </strong>
  <br/>
  <em><br/>Takato turned his face away, feeling eyes burning with tears that would never fall. So harsh. Jenrya surely didn't mean to be so harsh to him, not like that. Said like that, there was the overhanging, unspoken threat that if he were to fall behind, to do less of what the "other" asked, Jenrya would abandon him, like so many others.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya's dead eyes, fixed on the boy's huddled form, softened slightly. </em>
</p><p><strong>I only ask for your cooperation. The rest of you has merged with me. We are together except for…this.</strong> <em>He flicked a glance at the barren room. </em><strong>The human Will…different.</strong></p><p>
  <em> I am? I am different? It was his fault that he still had this tiny measure of awareness even now?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>It cannot be helped. </strong>
  <em>Jenrya's lips never moved. </em>
  <strong>You were human. That is the fault of nature. Nature made you into an inferior being. It is…</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Fate?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> There is no such thing as fate. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Then what is it?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>This is reality.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> And it was. Takato believed what Jenrya told him, despite his initial fears. Takato wanted desperately to please his friend, his friend who now carried many porcelain shards of himself like so many decorations. Jenrya's gray eyes were more blank than before, the eye-whites starting to turn black. Jenrya was Jenrya, but his eyes were somewhat frightening at the same time. Light gray stood out against a growing shade of black, the eyes becoming inhuman. Jenrya was changing. Evolving. Upgrading from his crude avatars of the past.<br/></em>
</p><p>
  <strong>It is reality that we are one. It is fact that we have our own individual duties. Fate is simply a convenient human word to place responsibility on vague abstraction. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Takato was silent, feeling ashamed nonetheless. He wasn't like Jenrya. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>There is nothing in this world like me. I am one of a kind. A higher function that nothing can match. Again, it cannot be helped</strong>
  <em>. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Still…</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>We must continue with our duties. I have a function, as do you. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Oh yes. Jenrya's function was to eat, to keep eating the energy from the souls that streamed in each night. It…was discomforting to think that…that people died for that, people he didn't even know were snuffed out like flickering candles. So easy. The sparks of their lives were robbed from them and delivered to Jenrya, who waited. Yet Takato did not complain, because whenever Jenrya ate, there was a sense of fulfillment that made him feel like before, like that time when things had been different. He…liked it. Takato liked it a lot. It felt good and he reasoned that if it felt that good, it couldn't be bad. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong> Exactly. It satisfies both of us. Humans die regardless. With this method, their deaths are not useless. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya always made such sense. Such cold, logical sense.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>You enjoy it. It is a side effect I did not predict, but it is of a positive nature. </strong>
  <br/>
  <em><br/>Yes, Takato breathed.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Then more you shall have, as will I.</strong>
  <em> The barest of smiles passed across Jenrya's tanned face. </em>
  <strong>But there are those out there who can be threats if left unchecked. They fear us. They want us to fail: for me to starve, for you to be unhappy. If it were in their power, they would seek to destroy me…and kill you as well.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Open fear rang through Takato's frame, followed by a strong desire to protect Jenrya from these…enemies.</em>
  <br/>
  <strong><br/>We can try to exterminate them on our own, with the resources of the city. But your Digimon would be more effective. </strong>
  <br/>
  <em><br/>Guilmon? A long pause. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>There are a limited number of options available to us. Our failure to dispose of the primary target has shown us that. Ryo Akiyama still lives because of these enemies.</strong>
  <br/>
  <em><br/>Ryo Akiyama…oh. The boy Takato vaguely remembered seeing in the merge. A faint memory, but it was still there nonetheless. There had been pain then, electrifying like a bolt of lightening had run into their bodies. Of course Jenrya hadn't felt it. Jenrya was above such things. But it had hurt Takato, even through the walls of his white room. He hadn't liked that.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Our range is still limited as I have not expanded enough to have full control over all resources in Tokyo. Your Digimon must help.</strong>
  <em> Jenrya sat down silently next to him, the gray-within-black eyes still fixed on Takato. </em>
  <strong>We will not be safe until that happens.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Takato paused. Will…will you leave me if we're not safe?</em>
</p><p>
  <em> There was only silence as Jenrya said nothing.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Open fear coursed through Takato again. No promise, no certainty. Unsafe in itself!</em>
</p><p>
  <em> With reluctance, he bent to Jenrya's demands. Jenrya knew what he was doing. He would protect them both from the threat from without. </em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya suddenly awoke with a start.</p><p>Cursing himself for not being more on the ball – what if something had happened when he'd been asleep? – Jenrya sat up, rubbing at still blurry eyes. It was nearing morning, the room no longer cast in the same uneasy darkness of last night. There was a grayish light now and he could make out the other people in the living room. Ryo's female guardian remained asleep, but even then he could see how pain drained the color from her skin. He really hoped his Dad came back soon.</p><p>Ryo himself still slept. In his sleep he'd sprawled out, shedding the borrowed blanket onto the floor. He didn't appear to notice that it was gone, instead breathing softly. Winding his way around the couch, Jenrya bent down to pick the blanket up and turned, intending to drape it over the other boy. He stopped.</p><p>Somehow the edge of Ryo's shirt had been pulled up during the night, probably through tossing and turning. That wasn't what caught his attention and held it. Jenrya could barely make it out in the dim light, but… <em>What is this?</em> It couldn't be what he thought it was, could it? No way. But…yes. There was no mistaking it. He could make out the dark, ugly knitted flesh of a large scar that almost covered Ryo's entire side. The scar was a nasty one, so large that it almost could have been mistaken for an extensive burn. He could only assume that the scar continued up all the way to the boy's shoulder, if he was to judge it just from the size of the visible part.</p><p>Jenrya started to feel sick just looking at it. What could a wound that caused a scar this big look like?</p><p>What happened to Ryo?</p><p>When he summoned the courage to look back more closely, he found Ryo's black eyes were on him.</p><p>The expression on his face was deathly cold.</p><p>Without speaking, Ryo quickly pulled down his shirt and covered the edges of the scar. It pissed him off that Jenrya saw <em>it</em>. He wasn't supposed to. No one was supposed to! Not even Tamayo. It was "his" mark. But the fact remained that Jenrya had seen one of his many scars and being angry about it wouldn't erase that. Taking a moment to try to calm himself, he closed his eyes. It would be pointless to snap about something like this. But still... <em>It</em> was supposed to be private!</p><p>Jenrya remained stunned. Whatever he just saw, it hit close to home. Too close. Too personal. <em>I've never seen him this close to losing control.</em> For a moment, he'd been sure Ryo was going to hit him. But the blow never fell and instead the other boy fought to collect himself before opening his eyes again.</p><p>"Don't <em>ever</em> mention that to anyone," Ryo said quietly. Barely suppressed fury colored his voice. "Not to Tamayo. Not to me. Promise me you'll forget what you saw."</p><p>Jenrya promised as sincerely as he could, but Ryo knew that forgetting was the last thing on his mind. That brief glimpse of Ryo's scar had been burned into his mind. Curiosity and the beginning of confused pity were already forming on Jenrya's face. Great. Ryo didn't want his pity. It wouldn't make the scars magically vanish nor would it heal the old hurts. Sure now that he wasn't going to lose control, Ryo glanced at his watch. Just an hour or so before dawn.</p><p>Jenrya still watched him with concerned eyes. Ryo was determined to pretend nothing had happened. But something had. Something happened, had hurt him so badly that his body couldn't even fully recover. There were scars, both inside and out: but it was the ones within that there were still raw and bleeding even as the ones without knitted. Compassion arose in Jenrya as the glimmers of understanding emerged. <em>I should help him.</em> But how? He didn't know much about the other boy. Ryo told him to forget it. But that wasn't the right choice, was it? So if it wasn't, what was the right one? What if, by trying to help, he only succeeding in making it worse?</p><p>Ryo flushed, feeling those pitying eyes on him. This was exactly what he didn't want. It was why he was so damn anal about covering himself up, even if only Tamayo was there. He didn't want that type of compassion; he didn't deserve it from Jenrya or his babysitter. Better to keep it to himself, hide the hurts away out of sight from all but his own obsessive thoughts. Irritably, he spoke up:</p><p>"I said drop it."</p><p>Jenrya frowned. "Ryo…"</p><p>"…I don't want to talk about it," Ryo said. "If I do, then I will. But I don't. So stop looking at me like that."</p><p>Jenrya looked away, biting his lip. It didn't feel right to just pretend Ryo was perfectly fine when it was clear he wasn't.</p><p>"Dammit," Ryo muttered. He really didn't want to be dealing with this. "Look. My problems are my business. So if I want to keep them to myself, then please respect my privacy."</p><p>Jenrya looked ready to press the matter but Ryo only glowered at him until the other boy relented and gave a quiet nod. Ryo refused the blanket that Jenrya offered and got to his feet. Jenrya watched as Ryo knelt by his guardian in the gray light. Tamayo remained asleep, face wan. She hadn't improved much – if at all – during the night. After a moment, Ryo got to his feet. He looked tired, aged beyond his years and exhausted. It was the first time Jenrya had seen Ryo without any smile, faked or not. The dark spots under Ryo's eyes remained.</p><p>"You should get some more rest. It'll be a few more hours before my dad comes."</p><p>Ryo waved away the advice wearily. "I'm fine."</p><p>"You don't look fine. You look terrible."</p><p>"No, I don't," Ryo insisted. He straightened. "I'm up already anyway."</p><p>Jenrya made a face. Well, there was nothing he could do about that, aside from trying to force Ryo to get some sleep, which wouldn't work. At the very least he could see to it that his guests had something to eat. Ryo sat down at the counter as the Tamer began to make a quick breakfast. Jenrya set out a bowl of cereal and fruit for the two of them. At first they ate in silence under the dim light of the bar's lamp. Ryo focused on the task of eating, while Jenrya occasionally snuck glances at the older boy sitting across from him.</p><p>Ryo didn't look up from his bowl as he finally broke the silence:</p><p>"Remember when I first met you?"</p><p>Jenrya blinked. He did but that seemed like years ago. This was the last thing he'd expected to be brought up. But deciding that there was probably a point to this, he nodded, "Yeah. Why do you ask?"</p><p>"…I was just thinking. I said some weird things. Just realized that I don't know why I said them." Ryo shrugged, stirring the remnants of his cereal in the milk.</p><p>Jenrya didn't know what to say. Why was he bringing this up now?</p><p>"Didn't know what I wanted to do with my time. I mean, yeah, sure. I knew my time was limited. But I didn't know what I wanted to do with it. So I said some weird things without thinking. I acted like none of it mattered…" Ryo trailed off and continued to swirl about the cereal moodily. "…I don't know. It wasn't important. Just thinking about random things. Forget it."</p><p>"I'm not going anywhere."</p><p>"It was stupid. I shouldn't have brought it up."</p><p>Jenrya dropped it reluctantly. No point trying to press the matter if Ryo would just be evasive about it. The other boy didn't finish his cereal, instead absently toying with the spoon. Jenrya himself wasn't really hungry. Not after the past events, and especially now that his curiosity kept coming back to nag at him. It was becoming obvious that Ryo had other reasons for the way he acted. Closely guarded secrets that even Tamayo would never know.</p><p><em>He can't keep it to himself all the time.</em> The more time Jenrya spent with Ryo, the more he was starting to recognize that all those grins were lies, like forms of defense. He wasn't sure why. Maybe Ryo was afraid of what would happen if people started to take him seriously. But this wasn't something he could keep asking about. Despite his concern, this was something that would have to wait. If Ryo did finally feel up to it, then Jenrya would be ready to listen.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The sky had become heavily overcast as the morning dragged on. The clouds scuttling across seemed to portend a heavy downpour. Jenrya sighed. Perfect weather for his current mood.</p><p>He'd had a lot of explaining to do when his dad had finally come home. Ryo had been kneeling next to Tamayo, changing the dry towel on her forehead for a fresh one when Jenrya's dad had arrived. He stopped, startled to find two strangers in his living room. Jenrya had hurried in before his father could start interrogating Ryo. Jenrya tried to explain as best he could why they were there, carefully avoiding any mention of Digimon. Or Golems. Or just how exactly Ryo's guardian had broken her leg. He wasn't sure if his dad bought his explanation, but he did agree to take Tamayo to the nearest hospital.</p><p>Ryo tried to hide it, but his face betrayed his relief. But that moment of brief weakness had passed. Now that Tamayo had been carefully carried to the car and driven away, the dark expression returned. Jenrya wouldn't be surprised if he was busy convincing himself that all the hospitals wouldn't be able to treat her leg. Or had burned down somehow. Or perhaps had been gutted of their personnel by the Golems –</p><p><em>And you're starting to sound just like him</em>, Jenrya reprimanded himself. They could only wait and see. And hope.</p><p>At the moment, Jenrya wanted to try to find out more about this threat that Ryo had talked about last night. But Ryo's answers were all essentially the same and there wasn't much he could ask that didn't stray too close to the sensitive topic of the Digital World.</p><p><em>It's either fight or wait for some sort of miracle</em>. Easier said than done, though. Aside from the hostile Digimon – and the false Takato – there didn't seem to be a lot to fight against. Going after the hostile Digimon probably wouldn't amount to anything. So any chance they had was in Takato. Follow the false one. And perhaps they would be led to the real one.</p><p>This was just bizarre. Any other Sunday and he wouldn't have even been thinking of any of this. But everything had changed once Takato had vanished…</p><p>
  <em>But he can't be the reason for all of this. Ryo pretty much said that this was in motion years in advance.</em>
</p><p>Jenrya sighed. There was no choice. None of this could have been avoided. He still had hope. They would have to just work with what knowledge they had and hoped it all worked out.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki had moved quickly. Nagamora would give him that.</p><p>By morning, Yamaki returned. Glaring pointedly at the unmarked vans, at the soldiers and at Nagamora, he walked right through the blockade, leading his own team of technicians into the building's front entrance. It had been rather ballsy – the soldiers had their rifles trained on the group the entire time – but there had been no order to fire. There was simply no reason.</p><p>After all, it would've only been a matter of time before Yamaki would begin to get suspicious. The important thing was to keep him, and any other interference, out of the premises when the Juggernaut was doing its job, which was primarily at night. Right now the entire building would be practically stained from the residue of thousands of Golems. Nagamora was confident that Yamaki would be hard pressed to find anything in that mess any time soon. But the fact remained that Yamaki would have to be dealt with. Even leashed, he'd simply grown too dangerous.</p><p>Yamaki had just disappeared through the front doors with his entourage when Kincaid joined Nagamora. She came up beside him, glancing up.</p><p>"You're sure it's okay?"</p><p>"Perfectly. But it's nearing time that he'll need to be seen to."</p><p>"Are you going to do it or am I?"</p><p>"You will. He trusts you more than me," Nagamora replied. He paused. "Although perhaps I should be close by when you take care of him. He'll attempt to resist, and –"</p><p>"– you don't want to see anything happening to me," Kincaid finished. She flashed him a grin. "I'm a big girl."</p><p>"It's precisely that attitude that always worries me, my dear."</p><p>Kincaid only rolled her eyes, but she was smiling, tickled. Nagamora shook his head. He wished Kincaid would be less impulsive. Or at least show <em>some</em> concern for her well-being. Back in the Digital World, she'd been so confident, so reckless that it even bordered on suicidal. He had never told her that, naturally. If there was one thing she would have taken offense in, it would be being compared to human practices, especially if <em>he</em> was the one doing the comparisons.</p><p>"I just wish you would be more careful in your approaches."</p><p>"I <em>know</em> that."</p><p>This was an old argument. "So why don't you ever listen to me?"</p><p>"Because I can take care of myself, so I don't need unnecessary advice," Kincaid said. "A human without a Digimon is a cakewalk."</p><p>"…I'm not just saying it for the sake of hearing myself speak. I really do want you to be careful. I mean it when I say that I don't want anything happening to you."</p><p>Kincaid fell silent at this. It made her uneasy to hear that kind of open honesty from anyone, even from her partner of several years. She had never had a life-mate – didn't intend to either – but she could admit that she liked Nagamora well enough. He was definitely life-mate material, she had to admit. Even when they both shared these misshapen, two-legged bodies, the Founder was still in there. Still the same, even concerning these old exchanges. He certainly acted like he thought they were life-mates. Ruffled, she changed the subject:</p><p>"When should I deal with him?"</p><p>Nagamora looked put-out, as always, when she retreated. But he went back to business. "In a few days. Perhaps Wednesday. Preferably no later than the end of the week. Will you have time from your duties to do this?"</p><p>"I'll manage. It won't take long anyway."</p><p>"Please be neat about it. Make sure that you get the body out of the building without being seen. You can dispose of what's left however you see fit, but we can't have this being messy."</p><p>"How're you going to explain Yamaki's disappearance?" Kincaid toyed with a lock of her vibrant purple hair, lips curled in a smile. This was safer grounds than the conversation only a few seconds ago. She'd much rather talk about business than Nagamora's concerns for her.</p><p>"He'll be transferred. I've shown myself enough there that they'll recognize me as his superior. They won't have any reason to suspect anything if you take care of him neatly."</p><p>"On it."</p><p>Nagamora pursed his lips – telling her again to be careful wouldn't do anything. The Deceiver would simply brush it off, laugh it off as she always did when he got too serious and earnest for her comfort. Still, he would be sure to be within the area when she finally went in to take care of Yamaki. That was the least he could do. Kincaid would simply have to humor him.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The air felt different. Strange.</p><p>Renamon's eyes narrowed. The air felt like it was run through with electricity, more than would be normal with a coming storm. And while there was a storm coming, that wasn't the cause for why her hackles were rising. Perched on the wall surrounding the back of Ruki's house, the fox-type surveyed the city. The haunting lights from last night hadn't escaped her notice. Neither did the static in the air.</p><p><em>Something is here.</em> A large Digimon had bio-emerged recently but there had been no sign of it. But whatever it was, it was busy. It was more than likely responsible for the way the sky was charged, and the sudden incoming storm.</p><p>After the meeting with Ryo Akiyama, she had a private aside with Ruki. What the strange human boy said seemed to fit what was happening now. Renamon had tried to fill in the gaps with what she remembered of her time in the Digital World. She remembered some talk of a Council. And that they had been looking for members of a Line to carry out the Council's plans. But that was all she knew.</p><p>"It's starting to rain – why're you sittin' out here, Fox Face?"</p><p>Renamon looked down. Impmon stood just under the fence.</p><p>"I'm trying to think."</p><p>"Don't strain yerself."</p><p>"I don't mean to." Renamon said, more in habit than anything else. "Thought you would've left a while ago."</p><p>Impmon looked cross at this but shrugged. "I was plannin' to watch the fireworks, but that doesn't sound like a bad idea."</p><p>"So you really are leaving?"</p><p>" 'Course I am. But I thought…" the darkly furred Rookie made a face, and reluctantly continued. "…that maybe I might drop by one last time. See how things were holdin' up."</p><p>Renamon looked down sharply at this. Surely he hadn't just implied…? "I never knew you were sentimental."</p><p>Impmon sputtered angrily at this, his cheeks flushing a faint shade of red as he swore up and down that he was no such thing and that if Renamon was implying that he was a weak, wishy-washy Digimon, she was going to be sorry. But his thrown insults held less bark then they usually did. He was the first to avoid her gaze, muttering empty curses.</p><p>Renamon sat patiently through it. "Being sentimental isn't necessarily a bad thing." She held up a paw before Impmon could go on another tirade. "My choice is to stay here, with Ruki. If you desire to leave, then that is your choice. Perhaps it might be the smarter of the two choices."</p><p>Impmon's expression shifted to an unfamiliar one. He shuffled his feet and coughed.</p><p>"Well. Maybe. It…wasn't an easy one. I was goin' to stay. But it's got too dangerous."</p><p>"I know. But if this continues, there won't be anywhere to retreat to."</p><p>"…I know," Impmon said quietly. He looked uncharacteristically serious. "But I still can't stay. Otherwise I won't last much longer."</p><p>Renamon tilted her head. That was strange. As far as she knew, the other Digimon generally ignored Impmon, yet he was acting like he'd just had a death warrant signed. "What do you mean?"</p><p>"I was offered a deal that I decided I didn't like. The choice was either obey or be deleted." Impmon scowled. "Didn't like the choices. Gonna hightail it outta here while I still can."</p><p>"Who offered this? What exactly did they want?"</p><p>Impmon fidgeted uncomfortably. "That other 'Tamer' did. He came a few days ago. Said that I'd be given the chance t'join their side and fight for them, that I'd be forgiven for something I don't even remember doin'. He said that if I didn't, he'd be forced to delete me personally."</p><p>Other Tamer…? Renamon froze. That could only mean Takato – the one they had encountered not long ago. Her claws dug into the wall as she leaned forward, suddenly attentive. Impmon might be able to help…</p><p>"Did he have goggles? Blue eyes?"</p><p>Impmon nodded. "Yeah."</p><p>"We need to find him. Could you – "</p><p>"I ain't actin' as bait."</p><p>Well, that had been her last idea. "Impmon, it's important that we find this imposter – he could lead us to the real Takato."</p><p>"Sorry, but I don't wanna play hero. I'm leavin'."</p><p>Renamon couldn't do anything, aside from forcing him. And that wouldn't be wise, because then he might be tempted to actually take the fake-Takato up on the offer and join his side. Her furred shoulders fell. Then Ruki and she would have to find some other way to find this Digimon and track him. Inwardly sighing, she nodded.</p><p>"Very well."</p><p>"I guess…uh…good luck," he said awkwardly. "Be seein' you 'round when things settle down."</p><p>He quickly hurried away before Renamon could say anything. She watched him go without a word.</p><p>
  <em>Let's just hope we have any luck left…</em>
</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid watched as the sky buckled under the clouds' weight and released a torrent of gray rain. The Shield was at work. She knew the symptoms. Whenever he was forging a masterpiece, the weather always reacted like this. Dark skies. Heavy rain. The black storm-clouds stretched as far as the eye could see. He was nearly done with his work. <em>He's been working ever since he got here.</em> The Deceiver was impressed. Zudomon, of the tainted Digimon, had been one of those most hard hit by their human partner's eliminations.</p><p>But now? He was one of the most stable of the remaining group. Greymon looked to be promising but he had been reckless, uncontrollable. So he was gone now. It was just as well, Kincaid decided. If he hadn't disobeyed the Council's order then, he would've done it later, at a more crucial point.</p><p>Zudomon must be almost done with his creation. It would be the largest of its kind ever forged, both in the Digital and Real Worlds. The easiest way to describe it was an artificial barrier: to be quaint, a shield. It would be selectively permeable; only Digimon and Golems would be able to pass through it. The humans would be penned in Tokyo, and any outside attempts at help would be repelled. Once that was up, the Shield only had to maintain the upkeep of the barrier. And once he was finished with his creation, any attempts at secrecy would be dropped.</p><p>It wouldn't matter then if the humans knew. It would be too late – they would have nowhere to run.</p><p><em>And then I would be done</em>. The disposal of the bodies left by the Golems would be left to the Juggernaut. Her job would be over. As would be the Founder's. She supposed she and Nagamora would still be required to stay behind to supervise. Nagamora would probably be relieved. He had been here the longest, working alone. A rest would be beneficial for him.</p><p>Now that she thought about it, he hadn't rested much in the Digital World either. Maybe it was time for an old war hero to take a vacation. A real one.</p><p><em>So how am I going to deal with Yamaki?</em> Well, she had plenty of excuses to get him away from the others. The room would have to be sound-proofed for her to work though. One of the many meeting rooms in the tower would work. They were all soundproofed and several of them were so large that they occupied almost a full floor. She'd try to do it by Wednesday: who knew if he got lucky and found evidence that would bring him to the Juggernaut? Better to silence him before he started getting loud.</p><p>There was also the matter of those traitorous pests. The Digimon who broke the taboo and associated freely with the human children. They were stupid – surely they had learned from the previous Purges. Kincaid hadn't been pleased with her servant when he'd returned missing one of the Ogremon. The children, she had said, were for the Juggernaut to deal with. His duty was to do as he was told and nothing different.</p><p>Speaking of which, she was going to have to send him out again to look for Impmon. He should have given his answer by now…his silence could only mean his refusal. Kaminmon would have to delete him before he sided with those children. Pity, that. It was a waste, but there was nothing else to be done. Obviously years of exile hadn't taught him anything.</p><p>"It's raining pretty hard, isn't it?"</p><p>Kincaid turned. Reika stood behind her with two cups of coffee. Kincaid accepted the offer, grimacing mentally at the bitter taste. She could swallow human food, but just barely. Coffee had never been one of those easy to take. It was with an effort that she didn't spit it right back out.</p><p>"Yeah. It's cool when it rains this hard."</p><p>Reika sipped from her own coffee, shooting a quiet stare over the rim at the technician. Kincaid was up to something. It was just a feeling, but it grew by the hour. "So what did you think of the blockade?" she asked conversationally.</p><p>Kincaid shot a sharp look at Reika, but the model had no other expression on her face other than one of idle curiosity. Wondering if Reika was more observant than she appeared, she turned back to the rain-slicked window.</p><p>"I dunno. Don't think it concerns me. That's Yamaki's business, not mine."</p><p>"What concerns Yamaki concerns us too," Reika said.</p><p>"Well, whatever happened, I'm sure Nagamora and Yamaki can work something out."</p><p>Reika paused. She remembered Nagamora watching them last night when they left the blockade. Thinking about it, she didn't trust him anymore than she trusted the foreigner standing next to her. "I don't know. They always seem like they're at odds with each other…"</p><p>Kincaid only gave a laugh. "You know how men are – can't help having pissing contests with each other."</p><p>"Yeah, but Yamaki's not that petty. He cares more about Hypnos than anything else." Reika stared at her coffee. Hypnos had always been his priority, even when she first met him. It was the only thing that kept him running.</p><p>"Nagamora's his benefactor. He'll know what's best for Hypnos."</p><p>"So why did he try to shut Yamaki out from the building? And all of us? He should know that Yamaki's probably one of the most important people involved."</p><p>Kincaid's eyes narrowed. These questions were taking a dangerous turn. This conversation was going to have to end before it went into places she didn't want it to. Finishing her own coffee – fighting down the reflex to gag in disgust the entire time – Kincaid shrugged and threw the empty cup out.</p><p>"You're asking the wrong person. Thanks for the coffee," Kincaid said, inwardly scowling at the fact that she'd had to choke it down and half-convinced that Reika had given her it on purpose. "I better get back to work helping with the investigations. Busy girl and all that!"</p><p>With that said, Kincaid hurriedly left.</p><p><em> She's up to something…</em> Reika frowned. The way she avoided certain questions was one indicator. Another was the way that she favored Nagamora; perhaps she had inherited it from Yamaki, but Reika found that she really didn't like – or trust – Hypnos' benefactor very much. He was as unnerving as Kincaid was once you really looked at her. Reika couldn't understand it. How could Yamaki be blind to Kincaid? For a second, there was a swell of the beginnings of jealousy. Could Yamaki and Kincaid be…?</p><p>No, that was stupid. Yamaki could barely put up with Kincaid for any extended amount of time. The idea of them having relations behind Reika's back was ridiculous. Besides, she had no reason to be jealous. Yamaki had made it clear that there was nothing between him and Reika other than the sharing of beds.</p><p>Still. Something was funny. The longer Reika came into contact with Kincaid, the longer her instincts began to protest that something was wrong with her co-worker. It wasn't right, the subtle way Kincaid moved, the very way she talked. It was alien. Inhuman. And it wasn't because she was a foreigner. Her instincts were telling her that no natural person moved like this, <em>felt</em> like this. Reika bit her lip. Perhaps this was just a baseless suspicion. But with something this serious, she was rarely wrong.</p><p><em>I should warn Yamaki.</em> Even if he did look at her like she was an idiot, this was worth it. Yamaki had a right to know that there was the possibility that Kincaid might have ulterior motives. Or might not be completely loyal. Yamaki had made many enemies, but Reika didn't know if some were serious enough to send in operatives to undermine him. Or even kill him?</p><p>No. That was stretching it.</p><p>But the fact remained that Reika was growing increasingly convinced that Kincaid didn't belong. She headed toward the elevators, intent on finding Yamaki.</p><p>Kincaid by this time had reached the Yuggoth deck. She wasn't pleased with the near-confrontation with Reika. Reika definitely sensed something. <em>All the more reason to get rid of Yamaki before she reports me.</em> First thing Wednesday morning, she promised herself. Less than seventy-two hours for Reika to find anything solid to base any suspicions on. It wouldn't be hard to avoid Reika until Wednesday morning.</p><p>Most of the investigation team was focused on the primary data banks and the Yuggoth system – Yamaki had wanted to make sure that those were undamaged from whatever had been happening last night. Kincaid worked to the side, hidden by one of the large consoles. She needed time to think and the best way to do it was to keep out of the way. She loved to tweak these humans, but now wasn't the time. Yamaki could still be a problem, even in his remaining days. The Juggernaut would continue to absorb energy from the Golems that came from Tokyo and its outskirts. Yamaki couldn't be coming by every night and raising a commotion.</p><p><em> There's got to be some way to distract him.</em> Yamaki couldn't be bribed. At least not with human money, not when he had plenty pouring in from his supporters. There had to be some other way to distract him during the night-hours. Her mind drifted as she ran the hand-held scanner over the computer's array of wires. What did he do at night?</p><p>…Wait.</p><p>He sometimes left with Reika. Alone.</p><p><em> He's not affectionate. So it's for the intercourse then.</em> Perhaps she could distract him for the remaining nights, offer her body to him long enough that he wouldn't be in any position to notice the lights. That was an option, but the idea of it was disgusting. Mating with a <em>human</em>? It made even her feel ill and she considered herself flexible. Nagamora would be furious if he found out what she was considering.</p><p>The idea of the Founder in full blood-rage made Kincaid quail inwardly.</p><p>Mating with Yamaki would be a last resort. Better if she could get someone else to do it. She didn't even know if she could distract Yamaki long enough that he wouldn't look out the window and see the river of lights. So it would be much wiser to have someone else do the mating for her, someone the blond man trusted. And who else was already in that position, but Reika? Reika was probably more experienced then her in the matters of human intercourse anyway. Yes, Reika was obviously the better distraction.</p><p><em>Yamaki must use intercourse with Reika as a type of stress relief.</em> Well, that made things easier. Kincaid would simply have to make it a living hell for Yamaki to be in the same room with her. She would dog after him, annoy him to no end and create such a headache that he would have no choice but to leave with Reika. That really shouldn't be hard, not with all the other problems that Yamaki had to deal with over the past week. She would simply be another straw on the camel's back.</p><p>Spying Yamaki coming onto the deck, Kincaid pasted an impish grin on her face and bounced out of her hiding spot, heading straight for the blonde.</p><p>Time to do her job.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"Ruki just called."</p><p>Ryo looked up. "What'd she want?"</p><p>"She wants to know if we should try to do a search tonight. Like, try to find any wild Digimon and see if we can find that fake Takato."</p><p>"Sounds like a start."</p><p>"Okay, hold on." Jenrya directed his voice into the phone receiver. "Yeah. We can do that. When do you want to do this?"</p><p>"Soon as it gets dark?" Ruki said on the other end of the line. "We can start searching close to home and widen our range as we go. We could meet up around nine or something. I mean, I can search pretty late. Mom doesn't care."</p><p>"Nine sounds fine. My dad had to take Ryo's guardian to the hospital, so I'll be able to stay out late too."</p><p>"What happened?"</p><p>Jenrya glanced at Ryo, but the other boy wasn't looking at him any longer. He was looking out the window at the rain pelting the window, expression unreadable. "Long story. Basically she fell from a two-story window and broke her leg."</p><p>Ruki went silent for a moment. "…Jenrya, I'm not in the mood for jokes."</p><p>"Neither am I. I'm not joking."</p><p>"I want an explanation when we meet up." Ruki said coolly. "Anyway, if you find anything before then, call me."</p><p>"I will. Same goes for you." Jenrya hung up, bowing his head. It sounded easy enough, but the chances of finding anything were still small. Takato was gone, and so was Guilmon. But instead of looking for them, they were going to run after the fake Takato, risk another encounter with him. <em>Let's just hope things work out.</em></p><p>Ryo hadn't moved from his position. Jenrya sighed. He honestly couldn't keep up with the other boy's constant mood changes.</p><p>"Come on, let's do something."</p><p>Ryo glanced at him. "Like what?"</p><p>"I don't know. Maybe we could just, like, look around ourselves. See if we find anything."</p><p>"Fine. Whatever." Ryo had a humorless grin on his face. "Nothing like wasting time."</p><p>Jenrya resisted the urge to retort that leaving the house was better than sitting inside doing nothing. Ryo probably hadn't meant that. He still had a long way to go in understanding Ryo. This was just one of those things he'd have to get used to. He wasn't going to be so quick to judge as he had been when he'd first met Ryo. Jenrya went over and got an umbrella as Ryo got to his feet and checked the large cut he'd gotten last night. It had fully scabbed over. Jenrya waited by the door; Terriermon had joined them, now perched on his Tamer's shoulder.</p><p>Ryo joined them. Jenrya held the umbrella as Ryo walked as his side. The wet street outside was practically empty: rain pattered heavily on the sidewalk in sheets. Ryo frowned. Something felt weird. Like…something was off with the air. It wasn't the rain. Something else…</p><p>"Do you feel that?"</p><p>Jenrya blinked. "Feel what?"</p><p>"The air."</p><p>Jenrya stared at him in confusion, but Terriermon nodded after tilting his head for a moment. "Yeah, I feel it too. Kind of like it's charged with static or something?'</p><p>"Yeah. It shouldn't feel like this," Ryo glanced up at the black sky above, frowning.</p><p>"You're sure it's not just the incoming storm?" Jenrya asked.</p><p>Both Terriermon and Ryo shook their heads.</p><p>"That's a different kind of feeling," Terriermon said. "This is stronger. Doesn't feel right for a normal storm. More like a digital field, except it's too weak for that." The bunny-Digimon shrugged. "Don't know what it means though."</p><p>"Don't look at me," Ryo said when Jenrya turned to him. "I don't know either."</p><p>"It's probably not something good," Jenrya shifted the handle of the umbrella in his fingers. "Maybe it's another sign of the weakening rift you were talking about?"</p><p>"Could be."</p><p>The three walked in silence under the shelter of the umbrella. Terriermon kept on the lookout for any digital activity in the area as the two boys fell into thought. Jenrya stole a glance at Ryo. What had just happened? How could both Ryo and Terriermon sense something that he couldn't? It didn't make sense. Ryo was human, like Jenrya. <em>Maybe he just picked up that sensitivity from the Digital World?</em> That was one guess, but he wasn't going to ask. Not now. Not after what happened this morning. He wouldn't get an answer.</p><p>The strange feeling in the air still bothered Ryo. Now that he thought about it, Terriermon was right. It did almost feel like a digital field, except more widespread. Stretched. Unnatural. <em>They</em> were doing something – perhaps it might just be the rift weakening day by day but this was too sudden. The wonky weather was probably a result from the rift. But not this. He wouldn't have noticed it then.</p><p>Ryo tried to remember what he'd seen and heard back…back <em>then</em>. It wasn't pleasant, those memories. Even the "safe" ones. The specifics he hadn't known. Something about a governing Council. They had to be using Tokyo as a fuel source for whatever was going to make the breach. But that was about all he knew. It didn't explain anything.</p><p><em>Don't know why I thought I could be such a big help.</em> When it came down to it, Ryo didn't know anything that could be useful. It had been arrogant of him to think that he knew everything that had been going on. It was just like all the things he'd said when he'd walked into that classroom days previous. He didn't even know why he had acted like that. Ryo's thoughts turned to Tamayo. Was she okay? He hoped so. It was his fault that her leg was broken. But still, it might've been far worse if he hadn't taken the lesser path. But the fact remained that he was the one responsible for her leg, good intentions or not.</p><p>Then there was the problem of this morning's incident. Ryo swallowed down the anger before it could rise again. Someone would have seen it eventually. At least Tamayo had no idea what scars covered his body or what he had suffered only a year ago. If he could spare anyone, it would be his guardian. She was innocent, after all. She had no place here, in the midst of everything.</p><p><em> It's probably too late though. We're in too deep to be pulling back out. </em>Ryo didn't want to think of it like that, but that was how it was. He would also have to consider the fact that it might not just be him that would eventually die, but others like Jenyra, Ruki and Tamayo.</p><p>It was times like this he started to wish he hadn't managed to escape the Digital World. If he had died, he wouldn't be stewing with these worries, these fears.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya? Takato asked timidly.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>What is it?</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Are we going to be okay?</em>
</p><p><strong>Yes. Our survival is prioritized above all else.</strong> <em>Jenrya paced about the room, turning his gray-within-black eyes about the door-less room that the Will hid in. His alien eyes returned to Takato, piercing</em>. <strong>I assure you that we will survive any attempts at assault.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Takato trembled. There would be attacks. That was a given. It was fact. Reality. Those outside hated both of them. That was the only reason he could see for the desire to kill Takato and starve Jenrya. The idea that there were people out there who genuinely wanted this scared Takato, almost more than Jenrya scared him. Jenrya could be loving, protective, but he could be cold, merciless. Ruthless. He killed without a blink. Takato remembered killing those two guards at the harbor. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Jenrya had done that, but so had, to some extent, Takato. There was a point where Takato couldn't tell who was responsible for what anymore. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya looked down at his hands. They had turned gray in the glaring white light of the room. Other changes were happening to Jenrya as a result of their merge: now his hands were evolving, the very tips of his fingers becoming jagged claws instead of human nails. But it wasn't organic, those claws. Takato could see that. Jenrya wasn't alive anymore. Jenrya couldn't be. Those claws looked more like machinery, hinged yet as smooth as the coils that Jenrya was really made of. </em>
</p><p><strong>Another side effect.</strong> <em>Jenrya said. His lips remained closed.</em> <strong>But to you, it will not matter.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Takato watched as the blue-haired boy rounded the small room, finally returning to stand behind him. Takato didn't dare turn around. He was afraid. Jenrya brought fear among other things. Jenrya had said that he would only be rejected, "expelled" so long as he didn't cooperate. He had already promised his cooperation. Promised it and whatever else he could give to Jenrya. But Jenrya was so powerful, so hungry and cold that he even scared Takato…</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>I know that. My…changes are involuntary. The merge created some errors in my avatar-programming. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em> But being with Takato couldn't make Jenrya so hungry, could it?</em>
</p><p><strong>No. That is my duty to absorb what I am given.</strong> <em>Jenrya's hand was on Takato's shoulder, who jumped at the unexpected pricking from those claw-tips</em>. <strong>But now there is something you must do.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Whatever Jenrya wanted. </em>
</p><p><em>Jenrya's eyes slanted away, focused on some other point as he "spoke".</em> <strong>We must protect ourselves. You agreed we would use your Digimon to help us. He is already tainted from your presence, so his use as a tool is permitted.</strong></p><p>
  <em>I stained him by being human.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Takato hung his head in shame. As always, he wished that he were anything but human. It was because he was an inferior human that he contaminated just about everything he came into contact with. It was his touch that made it so Guilmon wouldn't be of any use to the cause that Jenrya was serving. It was his touch that was at fault, just as it had been those other kids who'd been in contact with Digimon. Humans were the ones to blame. The human touch was vile.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>It is in the past. Guilmon was contaminated by you: there is nothing to be done about that now. But he still can be useful even now.<br/>You know this. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>…Yes, Takato did know. He knew what would have to be done. He knew it, had already agreed to do it, but still felt the ghost of guilt. When (if such a time had ever existed) he had been unbroken, without the constant presence of Jenrya, he might not have done this, might've refused. Nothing would budge him. But now it only took a silent stare now and Takato would meekly submit, shaking noiselessly. Jenrya held all the power over his friend. It was because Jenrya cared that he made him do these things. Jenrya made him hurt and kill because he cared. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Exactly. It is for our own safety. You are in no position to govern us. </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Takato knew that as well. </em>
</p><p><em>Jenrya bent down, a little comforting smile on his face.</em> <strong>So trust me then. I know exactly what must be done. </strong><em>His strange eyes never blinked. </em><strong>You only need to follow me. Obedience is all I ask and all you must give. I will never abandon you if you just give me this little thing.</strong></p><p>
  <em>Takato turned and looked up at his friend. Jenrya was right, as always. The claws tightened in an imitation of a caring squeeze. Jenrya was all that mattered, wasn't he? Even when he began to change, warp, evolve into a higher being, he was still Jenrya. Those faint memories of other humans, of Guilmon, paled in comparison. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Obedience. Takato already promised that. But obedience called for him to repeat it again. And however many times was necessary.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I'll give it to you, Jenrya, Takato offered an unfocused, glazed smile up at his best friend. For you, I'll do it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya nodded. That answer was expected. The Will was ready for the first task: the Juggernaut had been concerned that when the Will had begun to awake, it would be rebellious and try to gain control. But calculations had proved correct and whatever little portion remained of Takato Matsuda's consciousness was obedient. The Juggernaut reached over and held out his clawed hand. The Will gingerly accepted it, staring at Jenrya as he closed his fingers around Takato's. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong> You're a good boy, Takato: you want to protect me. You're the only one I would ask this of.</strong>
</p><p>Jenrya closed his eyes. <strong>But now it's time to do what you promised. In order to protect us, you must make your Digimon evolve. Evolution is the only way we can progress. It's the only way to survive. And we will survive no matter what happens.</strong></p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Voices. There were voices. The loudest was Takato's: cold, commanding and confident. Takato was busy. But when Guilmon tried to ask with what, he was hushed. So after awhile, Guilmon simply stopped asking and sat down miserably, drowning in silence as the buzzing in his head grew louder and louder.</p><p>It must be around late evening. He had crawled toward the end of the empty tunnel, near the end where the construction yard was. Rain drummed endlessly on the wet dirt. But the buzzing in his head didn't stop. Takato's voice made the maddening buzz better, made it easier to focus and less deafening. But Takato didn't talk with him like he used to, didn't just talk about random stuff like he always did. Instead his words were clipped and he spoke only when necessary. Over the course of a few hours, Guilmon had grown increasingly dependent on the sound of his Tamer's voice. It kept the buzzing bees in his head at bay long enough that he wouldn't start trying to do something dumb and bang his head into a wall in an attempt to dash them out.</p><p>There were other voices too, but none were as loud as Takato's. There was a faint one that sounded like an echo of his Tamer, but it was different. There was true fear in it, other mixed emotions that Takato's lacked. But Guilmon could never focus on that echo.</p><p>"<em>It's time.</em>"</p><p>Guilmon raised his head. "Time?" he asked, but they were words that he couldn't hear. The buzz drowned them out. He felt his jaws move but couldn't hear the words.</p><p>"<em>Yes. You're going to help protect me. After all, aren't I more important than anything else?</em>"</p><p>Well, yes, but…the others?</p><p>"<em>They won't like what I've become. They'll try to hurt me because of that."</em></p><p>Blind anger clouded Guilmon's mind, a smoldering rage that he hadn't even known he was capable of. <em>No one </em>would touch Takato, not while he was capable of defending him! Not Takato's parents, not Jenrya, Ruki, Renamon or Terriermon. No one! Not if they were going to hurt him. Takato was everything to him. Guilmon would willingly do what it took to protect his Tamer.</p><p>"<em>I know you will. But you have to become stronger so you can protect me. So it's time</em>."</p><p>Off in the center of the Juggernaut, the white Digivice began to glow – icy light spilled forth from its LCD screen, alighting the shifting coils, the pale, unmoving face of the boy's small frame, as still as a statue. It throbbed as both the Juggernaut and the Will opened the link and poured energy into it.</p><p>Guilmon howled as burning energy suddenly filled his limbs. It hurt! It burned! More than anything else he had felt in his existence…never before had he felt such <em>pain</em>. His yellow eyes rolling, the Rookie thrashed as Takato forced the evolution. Things were stretching, warping within Guilmon. The Digimon could feel the flood of energy changing his make-up. Changing his very code. He fell onto his stomach roughly. It was tearing at him, twisting, and tearing! But he could see the change happening with his own eyes as he twitched in agony.</p><p>His fore-claws stretched, growing even as the color of his hide changed. Red melted away into an inky black. The ebony tide started at his claws and crept up his arms and hind legs even as a mane of thick silver hair sprouted from his back. Small teeth elongated into jagged knife-like fangs. Bone was pushing up from above his eyes as his snout changed, growing more angular. Guilmon kicked, rolling onto his side. His eyes flared open for a brief moment: they were fading from warm umber to a cold, merciless yellow as the buzzing increased to a deafening extent.</p><p>Pain took over as the forced evolution continued.</p><p>After awhile, the Digimon's pained cries died out. The large hulking form rested against the concrete wall of the tunnel, panting slightly. The claws trying to rip him apart retreated, leaving only Takato's voice and the maddening buzz in his skull. There was also a newfound strength running through him. Even in the Digimon's increased size, it seemed like he was swelling, too small to hold whatever energy now filled him.</p><p>He couldn't understand it. But there wasn't a need to. All that mattered was Takato's voice.</p><p>"<em>The evolution is complete. This state will have to do until more energy can be spared for the next further evolution.</em>"</p><p>Black Growlmon grunted. What would he have to do to protect his Tamer? To protect him and shake off the ever-present insects swarming in his brain, swamping him with their hums? It was making him unable to think, to focus and driving him desperate for a way to shake them. Only Takato's voice provided any shelter and the Champion clung to his words feverishly.</p><p>"<em>We will strike our enemies before they can do the same to us.</em>" Takato said soothingly. "<em>But they aren't together right now. We'll wait until they are and then we move.</em>"</p><p>Black Growlmon understood perfectly. Perhaps they had once been "friends", but not any longer. All threats to Takato were enemies and all enemies were the same. Takato, while hurt, had other things he had to do. He couldn't fend off the threats by himself forever. That was where his Digimon came in. Black Growlmon would protect his Tamer no matter what. Even now, the Champion could feel his Tamer's apprehension – but he had no way of knowing that it was false, projected for his benefit by the Juggernaut. All he knew was that it angered him. His Tamer shouldn't have any reason to be afraid.</p><p>The anger that Guilmon had felt only a few moments ago couldn't even be compared to the brightly burning rage Black Growlmon felt now. He hated them for making his Tamer feel like this, for hurting him. They had hurt him somehow. They did nothing, lied to him, pretended to be innocent when they were indeed guilty. It was their fault. If they hadn't been here, Takato wouldn't be hurt, or scared. Takato would be here with him, in the flesh, right now if it hadn't been for <em>them</em>.</p><p>Black Growlmon hated them all, just as he despised the incessant buzzing that only fueled his newfound hatred.</p><p><strong>To be continued…</strong><br/>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>
  
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  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Colossus</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ruki meets a new student at her school called Alice McCoy, on a mission with Dobermon to make contact with the Tamers. </p><p>The Council's Shield arrives and immediately gets to work in Odaiba harbor, and Ryo gives Jenrya the brief rundown between what really happened with Adventure kids and the Council's "purging" them from the Digital World. </p><p>A familiar, corrupted face stages an ambush...</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Digital Shuffle</strong><br/>By famirad</p><p><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: Don't own Digimon. This fic is for fun!<br/><strong>Author's Note:</strong> Once again, this is pretty much an AU. It starts off at a point in the canon storyline (before the first Deva appears) and goes off in a totally different direction. This will be a crossover between Digimon canons.</p><p> </p><hr/><p><strong>D I G I M O N  T A M E R S<br/></strong>D I G I T A L  S H U F F L E<strong><br/></strong></p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <strong>(Colossus)</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Last night's search hadn't turned up anything. Just when they needed a Digimon to bio-merge too! They were going to try again today after school: Renamon reported that she'd felt a large disruption in Odaiba's direction a few days ago and Terriermon confirmed this. So Odaiba it was today.</p><p>Ruki glanced out the window of the classroom. <em>Why are they pretending nothing's wrong?</em> There were empty seats today, more than yesterday, but the teacher continued about her business, asking the girl sitting next to Ruki to recite off the class reader. Sitting here when she knew time was limited made the Tamer want to squirm in her seat. If this kept up, she was so ditching school and spending her time searching for the fake Takato. At least that would be more productive!</p><p>Classes ended early, just before noon. Most of the other kids were glad to get out early, but Ruki only frowned. The adults knew something was wrong, could feel it if not see or understand it.</p><p>Ruki remained behind to clean the classroom. She had just finished when there was a knock on the door.</p><p>"Hello."</p><p>The Tamer looked up. A girl stood in the doorway, looking around in mild confusion. <em>A foreigner?</em> Ruki raised an eyebrow. They didn't get many of those in this school, but the natural blond hair swept in twin ponytails and the accent were a giveaway.</p><p>"Can I help you?" Ruki asked.</p><p>The strange girl looked at her. "Where's the administration office? I'm afraid I got lost."</p><p>Oh. A new student. Leaning on the broom, Ruki sized her up. That explained why she was wearing those weird clothes – a simple, almost Victorian dress - instead of the school uniform. The foreigner was dressed as if she was going to a funeral. Black everywhere, from her high-collared dress down to her black tights and boots. She looked more like a life-sized doll than a girl. Weird.</p><p>"It's down the hall and to the right, near the stairs," Ruki said.</p><p>The foreigner offered the barest of polite smiles as she turned to go. "Thank you. What's your name?"</p><p>"Ruki Makino."</p><p>A strange expression flitted across the blonde girl's face, but she covered it up before Ruki noticed it. "Alice McCoy." Alice glanced at Ruki, and then down the hall. "I'll be seeing you later then."</p><p>She left. Ruki finished putting away the rest of her things into her backpack. Weird they'd have new students – foreign ones at that – coming in this time of year but she honestly had more important things to be thinking about right now. One of which was just what she was going to do if she really did run into the fake Takato. She'd be less conspicuous if only Renamon was with her. But there was also the risk she'd be out-numbered. Over-powered was doubtful, but power had nothing to do with it if the numbers were against her.</p><p>Shouldering her backpack, Ruki went out the door and down the hall. <em>Renamon and I can handle this. If anything happens, we make a break for it.</em> Jenrya had his hands full anyway. She shook out her umbrella and opened it as she stepped out of the school. All the other kids were gone by now, the school grounds empty and soggy with the downpour.</p><p>Ruki had disappeared down the street and out of view before the willowy form of a girl stepped out from her hiding place behind one of the trees.</p><p>Alice rested her hand on the moist bark. Her expression was thoughtful.</p><p>"She's one of them?"</p><p>A dark shadow materialized behind Alice as she watched Ruki. She nodded. "Looks like it."</p><p>"Are we going to make contact?" Dobermon growled, padding closer and nuzzling her hand with his snout. She caressed the rough fur of his forehead absently. "Officially, that is."</p><p>"We have to."</p><p>Dobermon only grunted between his fangs. "Are we too late?"</p><p>"I don't know. It's getting too close." Alice rubbed behind one of Dobermon's long pointed ears. The Champion rumbled in pleasure. "We'll follow her. She probably knows where the other two Tamers are as well. If we can get them all in one place, so much the better."</p><p>Dobermon knelt down as Alice took hold of one of the steel spikes of his collar and hoisted herself onto his back. He had been there when Alice's grandfather told her what she needed to do. There wasn't much time. Tamers had always been rare: the fact there were not one, but <em>three</em> in Tokyo already was incredible. The girl settled herself between the line of bony ridges down his back.</p><p>"Ready?"</p><p>"Yeah." Alice held on tightly to Dobermon. "Let's go."</p><p>Nodding, the Champion bunched his legs and with two bounds, lept to the roof. Rain fell around them as he raised his head, sensitive nose sniffing. The girl Alice encountered was out of sight, but her scent was still strong in the air, damp though it was. Dobermon moved from rooftop to rooftop, paws splashing on the wet surfaces as he followed the direction of the scent.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Yamaki wished he could shoot something. Or hit something. Preferably both.</p><p>Ever since yesterday, that damned woman kept hounding him with all sorts of questions. Right now Kincaid was providing a running commentary on what he was doing for anyone who cared to listen. It drove him up the wall. Maybe he should fire her. Or maybe he couldn't, because Kincaid was Nagamora's hire. Goddammit. Reika had helped last night to cure his increasing migraine but the moment he forced his way through Nagamora's blockade camped outside the building, it came back. Yamaki wondered crossly why he ever thought Kincaid was an asset.</p><p>"Sucks you keep getting all these problems right now," Kincaid was saying now, leaning on his chair. "You've got to be one of the most unlucky people I've ever been employed under."</p><p>That was it. He stood up, glaring at her.</p><p>"Don't you have a job to do?"</p><p>"I did. I was asking you a question." An innocent grin. "Job-related."</p><p>Hell, Yamaki couldn't even remember what the question was at this point. Without bothering to reply, he stalked away. This was hell week. Kincaid was right – he honestly couldn't remember having these many problems over such a short space of time. If it wasn't one problem, it was another right on its heels.</p><p>Yamaki found himself standing outside the Yuggoth's main room lighting a cigarette. Another one. Already. The reflexes were automatic. Reika found him smoking up a storm this when she came down the stairs.</p><p>"Is something wrong, sir?"</p><p>"Nothing aside from the usual stupidity," Yamaki gritted.</p><p>Reika glanced back the way she came. They were alone. <em>Good. I should talk with him now.</em> She tried last night, but Yamaki wouldn't hear of it. He had been in a sour mood and not receptive to any kind of conversation, much less any of her "typical interrogations". Obviously his mood hadn't improved since then. "Look, can I talk to you?"</p><p>"Make it quick."</p><p>Reika shook her head. "No. In private. It's important."</p><p>Yamaki paused, but after a moment, nodded and led her toward the elevator. The ride up to his personal office was in silence. Once there, he sat behind his desk. Reika took her customary seat across from him. <em>How to put this?</em> Deciding diplomacy would waste both of their time, she decided to get straight to the point.</p><p>"Are you worried about employee loyalties?"</p><p>Yamaki frowned. "It's crossed my mind. Is there anyone in particular this is about?"</p><p>"It's about Kincaid." The corner of Yamaki's mouth twitched at the mention of that name, but Reika continued on. "I…well, this is going to sound stupid, but I don't trust her."</p><p>"I didn't think you were prone to paranoia, Reika."</p><p>"I'm not," Reika replied steadily. "I wouldn't bring this up if I didn't feel this strongly about it." Yamaki motioned for her to continue. "She seems to support Nagamora, for one thing. And I was talking to her earlier – she was avoiding certain questions. Like she doesn't want to talk about them."</p><p>"That doesn't seem enough to base any suspicions on," Yamaki remarked.</p><p>"I know. It's not just that either. It's…it's hard to explain. She doesn't <em>feel</em> right. Something about her doesn't seem…well, natural."</p><p>Oh, <em>that</em> was believable. Now that she heard her own words out-loud, Reika realized how ridiculous they sounded. She might as well be a schoolgirl trying to tattle on someone. Yamaki regarded her silently. For a moment, all that could be heard was the rain running in streaks down the office's window. Yamaki cleared his throat.</p><p>"You said she didn't feel right. Like she didn't 'belong'?"</p><p>"Yes," Reika blushed.</p><p>Yamaki folded his arms across the desk. "I felt that too, but not with Kincaid. I'll run a background check on her."</p><p>Reika gave an inward sigh of relief. That was good and all, but her feeling of foreboding didn't fade away. That wasn't going to be enough. Something was going to happen: she could feel the tension lacing Hypnos.</p><p>"Just be careful in the future," Reika said quietly. "I don't think that she's as simple as we thought. She might have other reasons for being here."</p><p>"I'll keep that in mind."</p><p>Reika left. Yamaki remained in his seat, thinking. He would never admit it officially, but he trusted Reika more than he trusted anyone else in Hypnos. She had been with him the longest and he saw no reason for her to start misleading him now. On the other hand, Kincaid had only been here a few months. And he hadn't missed the way she favored Nagamora over him either. The fact she had been present at their meetings was an indicator that maybe she meant more to Nagamora than he guessed. Yamaki removed his sunglasses, rubbing lightly at his eyes.</p><p>Great. So now he had to be on the lookout not only for Digimon, but now for other humans as well. Reaching over, he opened his laptop and began the background search on Kincaid. While that was running, he opened up the e-mail he'd gotten not long ago.</p><p>By now it was fully translated. The address the e-mail had been sent from was bogus with no record of it ever existing. That puzzled him. Yamaki's tracking programs were of the highest caliber. They should've found something even if the address had been deleted. He focused his attention on the text. It read:</p><p>
  <em> Your savior is the harbinger of the digital apocalypse.</em>
</p><p>The rest of the short e-mail seemed like gibberish, despite the translations from English to Japanese. Names that didn't mean anything to Yamaki. Something that looked like the coordinates of a location. Then a repeat of the one coherent line in the e-mail. Another repeat of the same line throughout the paragraphs. And that was it.</p><p>Yamaki tried to puzzle it out. The only thing he could really focus on was that one line. And the coordinates. The names he could run through a scan and see if that brought out anything. <em>My savior?</em> Well, "digital" obviously applied to the Digimon threat. He wasn't too sure about "apocalypse"; the incoming Digimon weren't in such numbers that they were overwhelming. At least not yet. Yamaki leaned back into his seat, staring hard at the screen, green eyes reflecting the mysterious e-mail.</p><p><em> 'Your savior'...</em> That might mean Hypnos. Hypnos was the biggest thing standing against the Digimon, after all. But it didn't seem quite right. That line suggested that whatever he thought was his "savior" would result in some catastrophe. Hypnos itself was doing what it could to hold back the digital menace. So it probably wasn't Hypnos itself but something else.</p><p><em> I don't have time for riddles.</em> He'd look at it again later. Closing the e-mail with the mental reminder to look at it later, Yamaki got up and left his office.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>"What happened to Juri?" Hirokazu asked.</p><p>The atmosphere in the classroom was muted. They were in the same groups, but several students were missing. Jenrya glanced at the teacher. Mr. Mori, instead of strolling up and down the aisles like he usually did, remained at his desk with his eyes glued on the newspaper in his hands.</p><p>"I think she left Tokyo for some family trip," Jenrya said.</p><p>Slouched across the desk next to Jenrya, Ryo remained silent. He looked as cocky as he did the first day he arrived, a bored grin on his face as flipped his pencil between his fingers.</p><p>Hirokazu was doodling on his worksheet with a pen. "Lucky. Jeez, I wish <em>I</em> had time for a vacation."</p><p>"Yeah." Jenrya's reply was only half-hearted.</p><p>"So what's up? We working on this thing or what?"</p><p>"It's stupid. Why bother? It's not like it'll help us later in life," Ryo muttered. Jenrya shot a frown at Ryo. He could at least pretend to sound more interested for Hirokazu's sake. "Screw it."</p><p>"Yeah, but it's for a grade..." Hirokazu was taken aback.</p><p>Jenrya interrupted. "We'll just finish it fast and get it over with."</p><p>Ryo at least was willing to help, but whenever anyone tried to talk to him, he only shrugged it off with the same "whatever, who cares" expression. If Jenrya hadn't known any better, he could've sworn he'd been taken back in time to the first couple of days that he'd known Ryo. He acted exactly the same. Kind of a jerk. Exasperated, Jenrya vowed to have a word with him. Or something. What did you say to someone like Ryo?</p><p>They finished around the lunch break. The teachers, for some reason, allowed the other classes to eat together: it didn't escape Jenrya's notice all the adults went into one corner of the room as a group, talking quietly. Hirokazu ran off to find Kenta as Jenrya sat down next to Ryo. Ryo didn't bother to touch the lunch he'd made for himself.</p><p>"What's wrong?" Jenrya asked finally.</p><p>"What?"</p><p>"Why…never mind." Jenrya took a sip from his soda. There was no sense in trying to argue over nothing. "I'm going out searching again tonight. You're coming, right?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>Jenrya paused. "You don't think we'll make it."</p><p>"No, I don't. Even though it's possible, the odds are against you," Ryo said, glancing out the window, chin resting in his hand and his expression deceptively bored. "Tokyo's too big. Assuming you find Takato – not the one you know, but the Other – then what? I mean, what if he doesn't lead you to the real one?"</p><p>"I don't know. We have to try. I mean," Jenrya lowered his voice, "we don't exactly have any other plans to deal with what you told us. If we find Takato, we could cover more ground. So maybe our chances would be better for locating this…um…whatever it is that would open the door between Digital and Real Worlds."</p><p>"But even then those chances would be small."</p><p>Jenrya didn't reply.</p><p>"I don't believe you'll succeed. I know I've considered the fact I could die: have you?" Ryo paused. He was being too blunt, even by his standards. His voice softened slightly. "Okay, you're right about trying. It can't hurt."</p><p>Ryo groaned mentally. <em>Nice recovery</em>, he thought sarcastically. Ryo hadn't meant to be that harsh, but that was how it came out. Seemed like he couldn't deal with folks after all that time in the Digital World. Just because <em>he</em> knew he was going to die before his time didn't mean everyone else had. What he had gone through wasn't the norm. Unlike him, Jenrya hadn't grown up as fast as he did, seen the number of years he had. Jenrya was definitely mature, but in some ways, he was still a kid. Kids didn't think they could get killed. Not really.</p><p><em> But then again, why should he?</em> Just because <em>his</em> last couple of years had been anything but ordinary didn't mean everyone else experienced the same thing. Ryo was the exception, not the rule.</p><p>"Sorry," Ryo said awkwardly. "I shouldn't have said those things."</p><p>The other boy shook his head. "You had a point: it wouldn't be right to get too optimistic about this."</p><p>Jenrya went back to his lunch, face troubled. Ryo sighed. Apologies were never his strong point.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>By the time classes were almost over, Jenrya seemed to be in a better mood. Ryo was surprised. Then again, it looked like Jenrya was more forgiving then he would've been if he'd been in his position.</p><p>Ryo made it clear he wanted to visit Tamayo before they went out on their search. The storm was still dumping rain on their heads, the few people out there huddled under whatever protection they could find. Little flickers of faint blue lightning danced across the clouds' underbelly, the rolling boom of thunder echoing. This stupid storm was making him more and more jittery. Not only was it unnatural, it also cast the city in a dark light. Shadows yawned. And the increased electricity in the air was probably going to make it harder for Terriermon to tell when a Digimon bio-emerged. Ryo half-expected to run into one on the way to the hospital.</p><p>Once there, Ryo went to the front desk and told the receptionist who he was. Impatiently he filled out the paperwork as Jenrya hovered in the background, Terriermon watching from his hiding place in the Tamer's backpack. The form filled out, the two boys were led through the doors and down a series of halls. The nurse ushered them into one of the smaller rooms.</p><p>Tamayo's leg was in a brace and a small amount of color had returned to her face since the last time Ryo saw her. But she didn't look in any condition to have any visitors since it was obvious she was on painkillers. The break hadn't been clean, the nurse told Ryo. It had been necessary for her to have the painkillers in order for them to at least set the leg straight.</p><p>Jenrya half-listened to the exchange between the nurse and Ryo, standing next to Tamayo's bed. Ryo almost appeared like he was ignoring his guardian, but Jenrya didn't miss the way his gaze slid over in her direction more than once during the conversation. His jaw worked as he bit the inside of his cheek.</p><p>"But she'll be okay, right?"</p><p>The nurse nodded. "Oh, of course. As I said, not a nice clean break, but she can recover from it. She just needs time to heal and rest. So you're her son?"</p><p>"No. She's my legal guardian."</p><p>The nurse's eyebrows rose slightly. "I see," she said. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions. Why don't we take this outside?"</p><p>Ryo nodded. They walked out into the white hall outside, the door closing behind them. Jenrya sat down in the chair next to Tamayo's bed to wait for them to coming back. Terriermon shifted in his backpack.</p><p>"Jenrya, how long are we gonna be here?" Terriermon whispered.</p><p>"Not that long. We'll go once Ryo's done, 'kay?" Jenrya whispered back.</p><p>Terriermon nodded and settled back into the backpack. Jenrya glanced about the room. It was basically how he'd always pictured a hospital room: barren and as cold and impersonal as the halls outside. <em>Not a place I'd ever want to be in.</em> It was an unnerving place. The conversation outside was muted and unintelligible. His gaze fell on the woman lying next to him. Tamayo's eyes were half open, but they were glazed and unfocused, her chest under the sheets rising and falling slowly. He wondered if she even knew she had visitors.</p><p>He definitely hadn't expected her to speak. Jenrya nearly jumped out of his skin when a shaky, drug-numbed voice broke the silence.</p><p>"Ryo?"</p><p>Jenrya whirled in his chair. Her eyes were aimed at his general direction. "What?"</p><p>"Ryo? Are you okay?"</p><p>Exchanging glances with Terriermon, Jenrya swallowed. "Sorry, but I'm not Ryo," he said.</p><p>For a second, Tamayo went silent. It was like he hadn't even said anything by the way she reacted.</p><p>"Why…everyone ignore you?" the woman's words were heavily slurred as her head lolled drunkenly on the pillow. "Lef' you out there, I mean."</p><p><em> What's she talking about?</em> Jenrya felt guilty, but he was starting to get curious again. She really <em>did</em> think Ryo was here. He leaned forward, still feeling guilty about what felt a lot like eavesdropping on what was shaping up to be a one-sided conversation.</p><p>"I was gonna tell you 'ventually, y'know. Wasn't right they lef' you out there. Wasn't fair. Know you don't trus' me still, but I wanna help. Always did. Not like th' others."</p><p>"Jenrya…?" Terriermon's question was cut short as Jenrya hushed him.</p><p>Tamayo heaved a sigh, turning her eyes toward the ceiling. "Jus' wanna help," she mumbled. "Same now as las' time. Don't want t'see you hurt like las' time. Really care 'bout you; not doin' this for m'benefit. Don't want you t'hate me."</p><p>The half-Chinese Tamer's bewilderment grew. But after that, Tamayo fell quiet. She remained in the same state even when Ryo returned with the nurse. Wondering if he should tell the older boy what happened, Jenrya stood up. Ryo nodded to the nurse as she left and strode forward to stand uneasily at the foot of his guardian's bed. He didn't look happy.</p><p>"I asked if they could transfer her out of Tokyo, but they said she can't be moved," Ryo bit his lip, eyebrows knitting. "I don't want her to be here. It's not safe, not with the Golems running around."</p><p>"Ryo…"</p><p>Ryo sounded angry. "I can't even help her."</p><p>"It's not your fault - " Jenrya started to say, but Ryo rounded on him, black eyes flashing.</p><p>"If I was still a Tamer, if Cyberdra –" Ryo flushed angrily. He collected himself before continuing. "If I wasn't so powerless, I'd be able to do something. Should've told her to leave when I had the chance, but I didn't!"</p><p>Jenrya didn't know what to say to that.</p><p>"I don't know what to do," Ryo balled his fists. "Really hate this."</p><p>"If we succeed, she'll be fine."</p><p>"That's assuming she manages to live long enough for us to get that far," Ryo replied bitterly. "If the Golems strike here, she'll be killed."</p><p>Jenrya frowned. Ryo was right about that too. There was a chance even if they did somehow work things out, she wouldn't make it. And thinking like that, Jenrya couldn't help but wonder about his own family's safety. They were in this too. All the more reason for them to hurry.</p><p>"We should get going, Ryo. The more time we spend out there, the better her chances."</p><p>"I know."</p><p>"Come on," Jenrya said gently. He held the door open for the other boy. Ryo followed reluctantly, but not without a long stare back over his shoulder at Tamayo.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Forces were moving. The Juggernaut knew this. Exterior forces were at work even now. But something wasn't right: a factor was missing from its data banks, something that <em>should</em> have been in its calculations but wasn't. It could have been a simple error on its part, but that was doubtful. To the Juggernaut's knowledge, all humans with Digimon had already been accounted for, both living and deceased.</p><p>It had been aware of the arrival of a foreign girl, of course. She arrived before the first veils of the Shield's barrier began to fall into place. But the Juggernaut had not realized she was one of the transgressors of the taboo until it sensed a Digimon traveling with her. If the supercomputer had been capable of true surprise, it would have done a double-take. But of course such wastes of time were reserved for humans.</p><p>Finishing its efficient removal and disposal of the corpses left over from the Golems, the Juggernaut focused its efforts on pulling up information on this new factor.</p><p>
  <strong>Alice McCoy. Set search parameters to 100%.</strong>
</p><p>The search-scan came up with very little.</p><p>
  <strong> <span>Alice McCoy</span><br/>Sex: Female<br/>ID Number: N/A<br/>Status: Alive<br/>Nationality: N/A<br/>Partner: Dobermon<br/>Partner Status: Active<br/>Parents: N/A<br/>Next Relative: N/A<br/>Threat Level: Unknown</strong>
</p><p>Strange. Unthinkable that of all the profiles the Juggernaut had access to from its growing influence on the networks, it could not trace more information than this on Alice McCoy. A closer look at the information and the trails leading to it. The information existed, but it was tampered with in such a way it would be difficult to crack through the codes, even for the Juggernaut. It was possible given enough time. The supercomputer immediately set several of its extensions at work to do this.</p><p>Most humans simply didn't have the skill level to evade the Juggernaut like this. Others had somehow concealed Alice McCoy's identity, as well as her protectors' identities. Once the supercomputer cracked through the blocks on Alice McCoy's profile, it wouldn't be difficult to trace back to whoever was responsible. Measures would be taken for their elimination. It wouldn't do for skilled humans to be roaming free to do as they pleased.</p><p>Until it had determined Alice McCoy's threat level, the Juggernaut wouldn't strike at her. Only if she was a threat to itself and its duties would it take action against this new factor. It would wait for more information to filter in.</p><p>All the other systems within the Juggernaut ran smoothly. The latest energy from the Golems stored away for its later use. The companion system operated with acceptable errors due to its human nature. And the Will was submissive. Aside from this unaccounted factor called Alice McCoy, everything was as it should be.</p><p>The Juggernaut, while mildly concerned, wasn't worried. This new factor could only be drawn here because of the already abnormally high number of humans with Digimon. It would be merely another target in the future. If they were all in one place it would be easier to eliminate them. It simply made it easier for the Purge in the future.</p><p>The current energy levels were good: the Juggernaut had 5% of what would be required to make the breach. It already calculated the specific date when it would be ready. The supercomputer expected to be looking at a successful completion of its main duties in a few weeks. It was already planning ahead as to what it would do afterward. There were also its other plans – in the very rare, very improbable event that something went wrong – but those were only back-ups.</p><p>Hardly worth looking at unless the threat to its survival was very real.</p><p>The probability of that was low. Perhaps if the first Purge hadn't happened, then the Juggernaut might have considered the back-up plans more seriously. But the first kids had been eliminated before the supercomputer had even been conceived, much less built.</p><p>These new Tamers were already crippled now that one of their own had been put to a better use. Even the addition of this Alice McCoy could pose little real danger.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Ruki stepped off the train and opened her umbrella as she crossed the platform. Rain drummed against the roof and poured from the blackening sky with the same strength as when she boarded the train. It had splattered violently against the windows then. Now it painted the area in a blue-ish gray light.</p><p>The platform quickly cleared of the few people still standing on it. Within a few minutes, Ruki was the only one left. She waited patiently to the side. The train moved faster than Renamon could keep up, but her Digimon couldn't be that far behind.</p><p>Eventually Renamon faded in before her with a swirl of damp green leaves. Ruki nodded at her.</p><p>"Ready?"</p><p>Renamon nodded. "As always."</p><p>"Do you sense anything?"</p><p>"Yes. It's a bit difficult to tell what with this…<em>feeling</em> in the air, but there is something definitely out there." The Rookie tilted her snout. "It feels large. It's not moving, but is instead just sitting there."</p><p>"Do you think it noticed us?"</p><p>"Not yet."</p><p>Ruki thought about this for a moment. "We'll check it out," she held up a blue card. "Ready?" Renamon nodded. ""<em>Digi-Modify!</em> Digivolution, <em>activate!</em>"</p><p>The transformation only took seconds. Kyuubimon shook out her array of bushy tails, the last bits of residue from the evolution glinting and flickering out in blue sparks. Ruki quickly mounted her partner, holding on tightly to her thick fur. Kyuubimon burst into the air and sailed easily up to the roof and rebounded onto the next until they were traveling along the Odaiba's roof-tops. The air was far more salty than Shinjuku and Ruki could feel the icy sea air whipping at her face as they bounded from building to building.</p><p>Kyuubimon took a roundabout course, zigzagging along the rooftops, steadily drawing closer to the dark gray expanse of the sea. Despite the rain splattering against her jacket and her face, Ruki could still hear the piercing calls of the seagulls. Tiny white spots wheeled in wide circles in the distance, the birds paying no attention to the black clouds hanging over the harbor and the rest of Tokyo. Ruki put on her tinted shades. They weren't as useful as goggles might be against this rain, but they were better than nothing.</p><p>Ruki had no idea what was near the harbor. She hoped it would be Takato – the fake one – but Renamon would've been able to identify him. Probably not. Still had to be something worth investigating.</p><p><em>Assuming this "Ryo" knows what he's talking about in the first place.</em> Ruki didn't know what to think about him. She had heard about him from Jenrya a while back and had expected a person way worse. While she was neutral about this stranger, she wasn't sure what to make of his information from the other night. One side of her seriously doubted this was the "end" and that since Ryo obviously had some screws loose – whether Jenrya noticed or not – he wasn't to be entirely trusted. But on the other hand…</p><p>A lot of things <em>did</em> add up that supported his story. Not only what Renamon told her, but from what she'd seen happening in Shinjuku and the rest of Tokyo.</p><p>Ruki glanced up at the ugly clouds. The black underbellies looked solid, thickest over the harbor as they gently swirled…</p><p>…Against the wind.</p><p>Ruki snapped to attention, stiffening. A sharper look. She wasn't wrong. The clouds were moving in the opposite direction of the wind splattering rain at her. And now that Ruki <em>looked</em>, she could see a definite pattern to the movement. The darkest sections of storm-clouds were circling inward into a giant spiral. The mass of the unnatural mass of clouds loomed over her with the center – the blackest part – hanging thickly over the harbor. The cloud tendrils continued to slowly spin toward the center as Kyuubimon approached.</p><p>At first Ruki didn't feel any different. But as her partner bounded closer, the more she felt like the air around her was suffocating in a growing humidity. Kyuubimon didn't seem to notice any change in temperature and Ruki felt the cold impacts of the rain. She had to be imagining the wet heat of the air.</p><p>The humidity intensified suddenly. Kyuubimon, about to close the few yards to harbor's edge, suddenly veered left along the rooftops. At the very same time, water exploded upward in a massive torrent, Ruki clinging onto her partner as the Champion raced parallel to shore. <em>What the - ?</em> Ruki risked a glance over.</p><p>An enormous Digimon emerged from the harbor waters, lumbering out. A large green carapace protected its entire back, thick horns curling up from its temples and its heavily furred snout. It easily dwarfed the two of them: the huge war-hammer alone in its bus-sized claws looked big enough to swat down a building with one easy strike. Kyuubimon peered over her shoulder quickly:</p><p>"Zudomon. An Ultimate."</p><p>Ruki cursed under her breath. "Did he see us?"</p><p>"Not yet, but I'm sure he knows we're here!" Kyuubimon said. Ruki glanced over again at the giant Digimon standing knee-deep in the harbor. He had his back to them, holding aloft his war hammer as if directing some unseen force. The gray expanse of water began to roil, bubbling over violently. Soon the center of the harbor was nothing but a strange colored froth. Kyuubimon began to move farther back, but Ruki stopped her.</p><p>"Wait! We have to see what he's doing."</p><p>Kyuubimon didn't agree with this but relented nonetheless, circling back once again around the harbor-grounds at a safe enough distance that she could dodge any attacks from the Ultimate.</p><p>Zudomon continued to hold the hammer pointed at the sky. The spiral had grown much more dense, the clouds jet-black in the center. Rain slashed from every direction and wind howled all around Ruki and Kyuubimon in a whirlwind. It reached a nearly deafening level when Zudomon hefted his war-hammer and struck the boiling water. It sent up a huge spray of foam into the air. The pillar of water shone a vivid blue, the frothy edges sparkling with bits of glowing electrical energy, and continued to travel up into the sky. Ruki openly stared, gaping.</p><p>The glowing pillar continued upward until she couldn't see the top anymore. Then it stopped. It gleamed even brighter than before and the upper region began to flatten and expand outward over Odaiba in a monstrous umbrella. From this viewpoint, it looked like it was crawling, but Ruki knew that if it was at that height, it was in reality moving very fast. At this rate it would encompass all of Odaiba within a few hours…or was it going to continue to spread to the other cities within Tokyo? Or even all of Tokyo?</p><p>"Ruki, he's just spotted us!"</p><p>Ruki snapped back to attention. She had barely enough time to bury herself in Kyuubimon's mane before the Champion bolted to the right. Zudomon towered above them, an impossibly huge, living skyscraper lit from behind by the glowing pillar. Eyes narrowed in recognition, the Ultimate swung down with his war-hammer after them. At this close a range, he wasn't going to miss –</p><p>"<em>Schwarz Strahl!"</em></p><p>Something abruptly exploded behind them. Ash rained down in a white snow. Ruki glanced over her shoulder. Another Digimon had engaged Zudomon: he couldn't have arrived at a better time, managing to drive the Ultimate off-balance in momentary surprise at the aggressive assault. Ruki didn't even have to ask, for her partner had come to the same conclusion and bounded toward Zudomon again. Greasy smoke streamed up in several places from Zudomon's fur where small fires sprang up.</p><p>"<em>Fox Tail Inferno</em>!" Kyuubimon let loose an attack of her own, sending a salvo of blue flames sailing up toward Zudomon's face.</p><p>Their rescuer immediately followed up with another attack of his own. "<em>Schwarz Strahl</em>!" With a hissing whine, threads of bright red energy lanced out from the large spikes of the dog-like Digimon's collar and toward the Ultimate, leaving behind false-image trails. With their alternating combined attacks, the Ultimate was hard-pressed to choose a target.</p><p>"Ruki Makino!"</p><p>Ruki looked up at the voice and stared. Somehow she had missed their rescuer's rider but now, if she squinted, she could make out the platinum blond of pig-tails and the somber black of clothing of the other girl. Alice McCoy! No time for questions: even with two Champions, they were outmatched. It was only a matter of time before Zudomon regrouped under the surprise attack. Ruki nodded.</p><p>"Right!" She bent to speak into Kyuubimon's ear, "We saw enough. Pull back!"</p><p>"Agreed."</p><p>Alice did the same and her partner nodded. Exchanging glances, the stranger Digimon and Kyuubimon attacked one more time. Blue fire encircled Zudomon's face as the crimson beams of the Schwarz Strahl cut a hissing path through the air. Kyuubimon turned, and with a quick bound, leapt to the roof tops and raced away as quickly as she could. The rescuers weren't fair behind. By the time the smoke cleared enough for Zudomon to glare about for his assailants, they were long gone. He let loose a threatening guttural roar after them but did not follow.</p><p>The fact that she had been almost killed wasn't lost on Ruki. But neither did that make her inclined to automatically trust these two new strangers. What was with these people crawling out of the woodwork? Ruki glanced up at the sky and scowled. Whatever that pillar was doing, it was still sending out those tendrils and parts of the dark sky now had a blue tint where the growing energy had already crossed overheard.</p><p>Just what was that? And what did this mean?</p><p>And now a cold thought: most Digimon tended to keep a low profile in the Real World. That was why they remained in their digital fields or other hiding places whenever she'd seen them cross over. But Zudomon – the largest and most powerful Digimon she'd encountered so far – had been in the open. Almost like he didn't care.</p><p>A sidelong glance at Alice. Her unexpected appearance here was far too weird to be coincidental. Was she a Tamer? <em>She has to be – her Digimon isn't trying to kill her</em>, Ruki told herself. But if Alice was a Tamer, then maybe there were other Tamers around the world? What if they somehow could locate them? With that kind of help, they might be able to win… Ruki turned that thought over in her mind as she rode on Kyuubimon.</p><p>The retreat from Odaiba was in complete silence and the two Digimon were out of breath as they finally came to a stop in an abandoned construction zone. Tall cranes peered over the boarded up fences, the empty unfinished doors and windows of the small structure full of shadows. Kyuubimon managed to make it into the lot, panting. They had run straight from Odaiba to the edges of Shinjuku and her paws trembled slightly from the exertion. The other Digimon was in the same shape, tongue lolling as he panted.</p><p>Ruki slid off her mount as Alice did that same. She walked over a few paces from her Digimon and sat down on an over-turned concrete tube to redo one of her pig-tails. Ruki stared at her impatiently. Alice re-tied the black satin ribbon:</p><p>"Where are the others?"</p><p>Ruki crossed her arms over her chest. "What others?"</p><p>"The other two Tamers."</p><p>"I don't know why I should tell you. Maybe you saved us, but that doesn't mean I have to trust you right off the bat," Ruki retorted. Alice's partner growled warningly at this and bared his canines. Ruki didn't flinch.</p><p>Alice folded her hands in her lap. "If I was your enemy, it would've been less effort to let Zudomon do with you as he pleased."</p><p>Well, that made sense, but…</p><p>"So? What if you just want to get at the others?"</p><p>"Then I don't know what to say. I do want to get to the other two, but not to hurt them," Alice said, her pale eyes on Ruki. "You're going to have to trust me."</p><p>Ruki snorted. "I don't know who to trust anymore."</p><p>"That's unfortunate."</p><p>Ruki frowned. "Look, whatever you want to tell the others, tell me."</p><p>"It's not that simple!" Alice's Digimon suddenly snarled. He quieted when Alice raised a hand.</p><p>"Dobermon, wait," Alice turned back to Ruki. "There isn't a lot of time. It would be easier for me to tell you all together. Besides, there are three of you against just me and Dobermon. We'd be outnumbered if we did anything."</p><p>The foreigner had a point. Ruki didn't like it, but it was hard to argue with that type of logic. She exchanged glances with Kyuubimon. Her partner gave a small nod. Hoping she better not regret this, Ruki sighed. "Fine. I'll take you to the others. But I don't care if you saved us or not: if you try anything, I'm not going to let it slide."</p><p>Alice remained expressionless at this threat. She gestured. "Please, lead the way."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Kincaid paced impatiently across the Yuggoth deck. Yamaki had fled from her again, but at the moment, she wasn't ready to run after him. Not when she had more important matters to be concerning herself with.</p><p>Those human brats tried to attack the Shield. It happened a few hours ago and it irritated her that only now she was learning of these developments. Amazing how stupidly brave humans could be! They tried attacking and had run before the Shield could dispose of them. It was as if they were calling for their own Purges, defying their betters like the first children had tried. But then again, humans were very stupid, as a collective species. One couldn't expect much from them.</p><p>Still. The very nerve!</p><p>Kincaid scowled.</p><p><em> It'll be easier to deal with them once the barrier is in place</em>. It would take about a day or more for it to surround Tokyo. She obviously couldn't be expected to be there in person, but she knew what it felt like when one of Zudomon's creations anchored to the ground. The very earth would quake and groan under the shimmering power of the Shield's barrier, would belch forth fire where fire had lain dormant for generations before. She had seen it happen in the Digital World. It couldn't be that different here.</p><p>That made her feel better. You took entertainment where you could get it.</p><p>It was a bit gratifying to think the inevitable earthquake would wipe a few of these worthless creatures off the map. Gratifying, but not very productive.</p><p>She turned and trooped down the stairs, her feet clanging on the metal grating. The incident with the Shield a few hours ago should have been dealt with. The Juggernaut <em>should</em> have taken care of those brats before they got even within a mile of Zudomon. So why hadn't it<em>? Is it disobeying my orders?</em> Kincaid inwardly frowned, pretending to smile and wave to one of her co-workers, for a moment feeling unsettled.</p><p>No. The supercomputer was incapable of deception. It was more likely she hadn't been specific enough in her orders, and the machine followed them literally to the word. If she meant to imply something, it might not have caught that.</p><p>Kincaid didn't understand why these children had been allowed to break the taboo before she arrived. Nagamora had to have known about them. After all, he had been one of the heads of the Purges all those years ago. He was thorough in everything he did, including killing. Perhaps he'd been given a different brief than she had concerning these new humans.</p><p>Either way, they weren't needed now. At this point in the plan, they'd get in the way and make it difficult for her to do her job. And she couldn't have that now, could she?</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>Jenrya picked up the phone on the third ring. "Hello?"</p><p>"Hey, it's me."</p><p>"Ruki! Did you find anything?" Jenrya glanced outside. Evening was approaching, the already dark sky starting to blacken through the curtain of rain.</p><p>"Kinda. Not what I was looking for, but it's important."</p><p>"What is it?"</p><p>"It'll take too long to explain right now. Look, we need to meet somewhere and talk. I…met another Tamer."</p><p>"Another Tamer?" Jenrya's voice rose in surprise. Across the room, Ryo looked up. "What? Where? How?"</p><p>"I'll explain when we meet up. You free tonight?"</p><p>Well, he wasn't supposed to. The teachers gave him homework, but he decided he could skip it. A small portion of him felt guilty about ignoring that, but Jenrya pushed that to the side. "Yeah, we're free. When and where should we meet you?"</p><p>"The tunnel. You know the one. Head over right now. I'm going to leave in half an hour, so you might get there before me," Ruki said on the other end of the line. "Be careful on your way over."</p><p>She hung up. Ryo got to his feet, already reaching for his jacket. "What's this about another Tamer?"</p><p>"Beats me. She said she met another one."</p><p>"That's impossible," Ryo said flatly. "They killed all the others. This 'Tamer' can't be a real one."</p><p>"If this person is with a Digimon, I think that qualifies them as one of us."</p><p>Ryo only scowled, clearly not ready to place any amount of trust on this, but not against the idea of verifying his doubts either. Jenrya paused in the middle of retrieving his umbrella. Ryo had just said something weird and for a second, he tried to run over just what it had been. Jenrya nearly dropped the umbrella as it dawned on him what Ryo had thrown out this time. <em>Killed</em>…all the others?</p><p>"Wait, what's this about killing all the other Tamers?"</p><p>Dammit, yet another thing Ryo shouldn't have said. "Aren't we going somewhere?" <em>Good going, idiot.</em></p><p>Jenrya remained stubbornly where he was. "Don't avoid the question. What happened to the others?"</p><p>"You don't want to hear about this –"</p><p>"-Don't tell me what <em>you </em>think I want to hear," Jenrya snapped.</p><p>Jenrya was serious this time. Ryo sighed. There was no way to avoid this and no matter how much he wished he could swallow those words, take them back, it was impossible now. "…Fine, if you feel that way. I'll tell you on the way."</p><p>The Tamer stared at him for a long moment, as if sure Ryo wasn't going to keep his word when they walked out the door. Finally, he nodded unhappily. "Okay."</p><p>Ryo didn't want to talk about this. Honestly didn't want to. It was one of the many nasty little things he'd stumbled upon in the Digital World. One of the nasty links between human and Digimon, between the Real and the Digital Worlds. Proof enough that even humans were capable of their own kinds of evils, in some ways worse than Ryo's own betrayal. At least <em>he</em> had found out. The first Tamers had no idea what had happened to them. Had to have died without ever knowing just what they had done wrong, or why they were even there in the first place. Supposedly they'd put up a hell of a fight in the end. Supposedly.</p><p>All he knew was they were dead. Amounted to the same thing in his book.</p><p>"We weren't the first Tamers," Ryo began as they finally stepped out into the deepening twilight. His dark expression matched his thoughts. "There were a few others before us. This was before the video games came out, they hadn't made the card game yet."</p><p>"So this was several years ago then?" Jenrya asked, Terriermon's button eyes fixed on Ryo.</p><p>Ryo nodded.</p><p>"Yeah. Back then, the concept of Digimon and the Digital World wasn't known to a lot of people. It was only after…the deaths they made it public," Ryo continued as they walked through the puddle-strewn sidewalk, rain pattering around the three. "I don't know much about the details, like why the first kids were there. Or why they were allowed to be with Digimon even though it's a taboo in the Digital World. They were already long-gone by the time I got there, at any rate."</p><p>"A group of kids suddenly vanished from their summer camp. Bet there's some mention of them in old newspapers if you wanted to look it up. They were called the 'Chosen Children' back then. Not 'Tamers'. Sick little joke if you ask me, because who would want to be 'chosen' to end up like that? Or why monsters are out for your blood? I don't know how they got 'chosen' to go to the Digital World, except it was humans who sent them and it was humans who abandoned them when things got bad."</p><p>An old anger flashed across Ryo's face as he went on.</p><p>"The Digimon didn't attack aggressively at first. I don't think they knew what to make of us, just like we didn't know what to make of them. A few kids probably didn't seem threatening. But something happened and, for whatever the reason, they began to attack more and hit harder. And they must have found out about whoever chose these 'Chosen Children', because any help those kids must've had before disappeared. These kids were our age – naturally they didn't know what to do and they got disorganized."</p><p>"The Digimon were the complete opposite. They <em>organized</em>. Even when the 'Chosen Children' split and went their separate ways, the Digimon rooted them out and began to systematically kill them all one by one in what they called 'Purges'. No survivors. I don't know what happened to their partners: maybe they might've been deleted themselves, who knows?"</p><p>Ryo fell silent and then shrugged as he finished up.</p><p>"Their partnership with those Digimon was a death warrant in itself. And it's the same now."</p><p>Terriermon shrank back inside Jenrya's backpack. "Eight kids?"</p><p>"Five boys, three girls."</p><p>"…Jenrya, what was that TV show called again?" Terriermon asked, his voice suddenly small.</p><p>Ryo frowned. He'd never heard of this. "What TV show?"</p><p>"Digimon Adventure."</p><p>A sick feeling began to settle in Jenrya's stomach.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The humans were moving closer together. As night fell on the shaken city, the Juggernaut prepared for another round of data uploading. It had been tracking all the human children, but they were only now coming together. Despite the lack of information regarding Alice McCoy, the supercomputer knew what they were doing: they were attempting to organize.</p><p>That type of organization was dangerous. The joint presence of <em>both</em> Ryo Akiyama and this Alice McCoy couldn't be ignored, not after further data trickled in concerning the latter.</p><p>The Juggernaut was going to have to act and act <em>now</em>.</p><p>A quick cycle through courses of action currently available. Black Growlmon remained near the area where they were most likely heading for, judging on its triangulation system. There was enough spare power to force another evolution, to the Ultimate level, if it became necessary, but it would only be temporary and could fry the connection it had on the beast. Ignoring that option, the Juggernaut opted for another. It would attack both with its extensions and with Takato Matsuda's Digimon without additional evolutions.</p><p>
  <em> Are they coming?</em>
</p><p>The Juggernaut easily slipped back within the Will's psyche.</p><p>
  <em> Jenrya suddenly appeared within Takato's little white room. His silver-within-black eyes roved about the room for a second before coming to rest on the boy before him. Takato got to his feet, hugging his arms to his chest. His discomfort was obvious. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Fear nearly paralyzed Takato. Jenrya sometimes let him get a glimpse of what was happening outside. He had done so ever since Takato woke up here in this place. Takato didn't like it when he did that. Vague images of his enemies moving, moving together to hurt and kill just like he'd been forced to hurt and kill during the nights. But Jenrya was here now in the flesh. That could only mean that something needed doing. Jenrya needed him, no matter how obedient Takato was, how inferior he was. </em>
</p><p><strong> They're coming</strong>. <em>Jenrya crossed the room, and, reaching out, took one of Takato's hands in his cold claw-tips. Takato shuddered at Jenrya's mutations touching him.</em> <strong>But we're not going to let them do as they please.</strong></p><p>
  <em> Blind hope surged at Jenrya's words, prompting the barest of smiles from the avatar. The hand he held tightened around his claws, Takato's other arm still hugging his chest as if he was holding himself together.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> Don't worry. They won't get near me. </strong>
</p><p>I don't want them to<em>, Takato's fingers trembled around Jenrya's new claws. </em>I don't want them to find you. Don't want you to leave me alone.</p><p>
  <strong>You made your promise to me and I will keep my own word. You should know me better than that.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> Takato received this faint reprimand as if he'd been slapped across the face. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He rocked backward, wavering on his feet slightly. Jenrya's face remained expressionless, his inhuman eyes unreadable. The pupils pinpricks inside wells of silver.<br/></em>
</p><p><strong>Very soon our enemies will be together. They want us destroyed. Now we must defend ourselves</strong>. <em>Jenrya's lips never moved as he spoke.</em> <strong>You must control your Digimon when the time comes. I will assist.</strong></p><p><em> Why couldn't Jenrya just kill them? He was much more powerful than Takato would ever be</em>.</p><p><strong>It's a waste of resources. I am not willing to expend more energy than necessary. Use of your Digimon is more cost-efficient.</strong> <em>Jenrya replied coolly</em>. <strong>Our joint attack will commence in approximately thirty minutes. You will engage Jenrya Lee and Ryo Akiyama while I engage Alice McCoy and Ruki Makino.</strong></p><p>
  <em>A small kernel of Takato felt uneasy at this but he only nodded, still feeling his shame from doubting his friend who had done nothing but help him.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong> This is no different from eliminating our other enemies.</strong>
</p><p>
  <em> No difference. Just strangers…they didn't mean anything to Jenrya, why should they mean anything to Takato? </em>
</p><p><strong> Precisely</strong>.</p><p><em> Takato smiled back brokenly. Oh. That was good then</em>.</p><p>The Will quieted, lying dormant and waiting for the signal to start the attack.</p><p>The Juggernaut worked without ceasing through this exchange. Only a minor portion of it was needed for this and while the avatar programming for the Jenrya Lee image had been damaged by the merge and had mutated, there was no need to correct it now. The companion system was beyond being able to distinguish the difference anyway.</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The Juggernaut already began to lay the ambush in Shinjuku.</p><p>Black Growlmon crouched in the darkness of an incomplete building's shell, near the end of the tunnel where he was reborn. His eyes narrowed into yellow slits as he faced the path leading to the entrance. Takato told him his enemies were on the move. That they were on their way to organize an attack on him, to kill <em>his</em> Tamer.</p><p>The Champion nearly broke his cover at hearing this, pure rage clouding his vision. But Takato had applied some kind of pressure - the buzzing bees suddenly agonizingly intense in the Digimon's head - and forced him to remain where he was. Black Growlmon could feel his whole body taut with tension, his wickedly sharp claws digging into the dirt with barely suppressed fury.</p><p>He was going to kill them. Tear every last one into bloody shreds.</p><p>That thought was nice. He liked it since it made the buzzing in his skull a little better. And it was something Takato would approve of. Takato <em>wanted</em> him to tear them into bloody shreds. Muscles tense, the large Champion quivered with rising blood-lust. These enemies were torturing him even now! Black Growlmon wanted to kill <em>now</em>, but they weren't here yet, Takato told him. He'd have to wait.</p><p>Yet another thing that Black Growlmon hated them all for.</p><p>They were delaying their deaths just to madden him further! Twisted. Not only did they want to hurt his Tamer, but they were out to torture him as well. How could anyone, human or Digimon, be so downright disgusting?</p><p>"<em>They're sick</em>," Takato's voice agreed. "<em>We're going to flush them out like the disease they are. You have to flush an infection from a wound before it spreads. They want to infect me, make me hurt even more</em>."</p><p>A snarl of fury rumbled through Black Growlmon's body. His Tamer hadn't done anything to earn any of this. <em>They</em> had betrayed him for no reason. <em>They</em> wanted to hurt him for no reason. Why couldn't he come out and hunt them down? This waiting was unbearable, each second dragging on longer then the one before it.</p><p>"<em>Trust me, you won't have to wait long</em>."</p><p>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx</p><p>The rain didn't look like it would let up any time soon. Terriermon didn't like this rain: something about it felt wrong. Flat and monotonous. Dead. The trip toward the tunnel had been mostly silent after Ryo's explanation, but that didn't make it any less awkward. It was one of the few times Terriermon wished he wasn't a Digimon and that he could vanish inside Jenrya's backpack.</p><p>Terriermon hadn't really known that much about the details of the "Purge", other than that it existed and supposedly a "great evil" had been eliminated through it. In the Digital World, he had mostly kept to himself, but even rumors like that had reached him in the wild.</p><p><em> Wonder if Ryo hates all Digimon for that.</em> It was a random thought, but Terriermon's eyes flicked over quickly to the tall human. <em>Not all of us hunted those kids…</em></p><p>True. But also true was that the Purge had been in the past. <em>Momentai</em>, Terriermon reminded himself. Momentai always made him more optimistic and this wasn't any exception. That Purge with the first kids had been in the past. He had nothing to do with it. But if there was going to be another one – from what Ryo had said, there was – then the Rookie already knew which side he was on.</p><p>Eventually they took a turn down the empty street. Moonlight struggled to filter through the storm clouds and the best light they could get was from a large lamp burning dimly in the abandoned construction site half a block away. The gloom made visibility poor, the pattering rain on the sidewalk a never-ending drum.</p><p>Jenrya finally broke the silence as they stopped under a plastic canopy of a store. He glanced at his watch.</p><p>"We're a little early, but she's on her way."</p><p>Terriermon started to plop back down into the depths of his Tamer's backpack but then hesitated. His nose wasn't as good as Guilmon's, but he was picking up something. Something familiar. He frowned and tried to place the scent. Ryo glanced out at the downpour. The temperature had dropped since the sunset and his breaths came out as little puffs of white.</p><p>"So we waiting here or heading over?"</p><p>"We'll head over in a minute. I wanted to stop and see if we forgot anything."</p><p>"Got my D-Arc, but it's still fried from last time."</p><p>"I brought mine too. And some cards just in case," Jenrya bit his lip. "Can't think of anything else I need right now. Terriermon?"</p><p>Terriermon didn't reply. He had crawled out of Jenrya's backpack during the exchange and now half-perched on his Tamer's head, small paws buried in his thick blue hair. His nose wiggled as he sniffed at the damp air.</p><p>"Terriermon, what're you doing?" Jenrya protested as his partner rested more weight on his head.</p><p>"Something smells funny," Terriermon said, his nose still twitching. "It's hard to tell with all this rain, but it's…familiar. It's not one of your human-smells."</p><p>Ryo exchanged glances with Jenrya. "Another Digimon?"</p><p>"I think so. But I didn't sense a digital field or anything," Terriermon sounded confused. "Maybe…I dunno. This scent though! I <em>know</em> I've smelled it before."</p><p>Jenrya gazed out through the rain. It was hard to see through the darkness, but the only thing to see was the single construction lamp illuminating the gaping maw of a half-finished office building and the tunnel entrance behind it. Other than that, nothing. Just the same, dull pattering of the rain spilling from the mass of clouds above. But Terriermon obviously was onto something, so...</p><p>"Can you tell what direction it's from?"</p><p>Terriermon made a face at Jenrya's question. "Not really. I think it's close but…" he suddenly froze, his small claws catching in his Tamer's hair.</p><p>"Ow! Close but what?"</p><p>Terriermon sounded panicked. "I <em>knew </em>I knew it! It's Guilmon's!"</p><p><em> Guilmon</em>? What was going on here? Guilmon vanished a few days ago right out from under Terriermon's nose. When did he return to the tunnels? And more importantly, why did he wander off in the first place? Ryo made a small snort at this, clearly suspicious. Jenrya himself wasn't sure what to do. It was good and all that they found Guilmon…yet, something didn't seem <em>right</em>.</p><p>"Should we go look for him?"</p><p>"Of course we should!" Terriermon looked surprised his Tamer would even ask.</p><p>Ryo shook his head. "I don't think we should," he said at the same time.</p><p>"We can't do both," Jenrya said as Ryo ignored Terriermon's scowl. "Terriermon, are you <em>sure</em> it's Guilmon?"</p><p>Terriermon tested the air again. "Yeah, pretty sure. There's some other weird smells, but I can tell it's his."</p><p>"Look, if the Digimon could change shapes and pretend to be human, they could pretend to be another Digimon," Ryo replied. "It's too convenient."</p><p>"…Okay, fine. We'll go into the tunnel and search there. It's not a good idea to go wandering about until we meet up with Ruki and this other Tamer she said she found," Jenrya said. "We can look for Guilmon then. We'll be better prepared if we're in a group."</p><p>It was decided. They left the safety of the store's overhang and went back under the relentless downpour. The chill of the air, mingled with the constant pattering of the storm, made it dangerously easy to fall into a lull. Jenrya forced himself to stay on his guard as they went down the side street toward the construction site that sat before their destination. He trusted Terriermon and he trusted Ryo enough now that his advice was worth thinking over. Guilmon was more than likely around here – or had been recently – but there was something wrong as well.</p><p>Just what did Guilmon have to do with Takato disappearing?</p><p><em> Guilmon knows we were worried about him. </em>Terriermon had been bouncing in pure panic when he found out. And even now, just as one part of Jenrya was sick with worry over the loss of his best friend, another was concerned about Guilmon. Terriermon said he had been acting like he was sick the last time he saw him. So was he okay now? Still sick?</p><p>The three neared the construction site. In order to get to the entrance, they would have to cut across the fenced-in area. Since the makeshift gate hung open on hinges broken from too many curious kids, they would use a side gate to get into the blocked road leading to the tunnel. Jenrya had done it plenty of times whenever they met up here in the past.</p><p>For some reason, though, Jenrya found himself not wanting to approach what sat in the construction site. The blackness of the half-finished office building struck him as ominous, its structure covered with the rusting scaffolding clinging to its sides. It almost felt like it was somehow breathing.</p><p>Something bright sparked within the heart of the building:</p><p>"<em>Exhaust Flame!"</em></p><p>The small group managed to scatter. Barely. A split second passed and blazing heat exploded right where they stood only seconds before. It seared right through the rain and sent up a cloud of steam as the jet of white fire belched from the gaping hole in the office building.</p><p>Jenrya hit the pavement hard, splashing through a muddy puddle as he quickly picked himself up off the ground. A few feet away, Ryo was doing the same. Automatically Jenrya reached for his cards as Terriermon hopped down. Between Ryo and Jenrya stood a line of fire, some of the ground scorched into glass from the very heat of the attack, flames flickering and dancing brightly even in the downpour.</p><p>It was by the eerie light of this fire that Jenrya caught his first glimpse of their attacker.</p><p>The Digimon blended in with the very shadows around him as he left the confines of the building. His hide was as black as the sky above, his form all too familiar to Jenrya. Spikes protruded out from the Digimon's acid-yellow eyes, the long silver mane matted in the heavy rain. The bands around his limbs and tail glowed faintly in the light as he came into full view. Long fangs revealed themselves as the looming shadow snarled, the white fire licking between those jagged knives.</p><p>Even hearing the strange hatred in the Digimon's voice, Jenrya knew exactly who this was:</p><p>Growlmon.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>To be continued…</strong>
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